


Lost Stars

by hero_hero



Series: Foxbody [2]
Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Animals, Angst, Astronomy, Constellations, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fox!Jeongin, M/M, Minho is the moon, jisung is the sun, sigh, this is still a mess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-04
Updated: 2020-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:14:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 21,570
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23008888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hero_hero/pseuds/hero_hero
Summary: In which Jeongin learns what it's like to be human (spoiler alert: it's not as easy as it looks). He has left his old life as a fox behind. That is, until his path crosses with a certain human once again...
Relationships: Hwang Hyunjin & Yang Jeongin | I.N, Hwang Hyunjin/Yang Jeongin | I.N, Kim Seungmin/Lee Felix, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Series: Foxbody [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1641826
Comments: 35
Kudos: 158





	Lost Stars

**Author's Note:**

> TW // suicidal thoughts
> 
> *Please read Part 1 before you read this! It'll be VERY confusing if you don't lol*
> 
> This is still kind of a mess but oh well. I’ve discovered that “Lost Stars” by Adam Levine fits this entire series so, so well, so that’s the unofficial theme song of this! (though tbh I like Jungkook’s cover better than the original). Honestly it’s kinda…freaky how well the lyrics fit. And it’s entirely unintentional, I swear.
> 
> But anyways, I hope you guys enjoy! Fyi this is not beta’d at all, so please forgive typos and mistakes :)

This was not Hyunjin’s year. Things just kept going from bad to worse, and he couldn’t help thinking if Life had it out for him or something.

First it was school. Barely managing to pass most of his classes. Constant projects and tests and readings to keep up on. Just going to class sucked the life out of him and made him wonder if higher education was even worth it.

Then it was work. Constantly being nitpicked. Constantly insecure, wondering if he was good enough. Thinking that modeling really wasn’t a talent or a skill and that he was just getting by because he happened to have perfect features. If he died young, all anyone would say about him was that he was pretty and that life was easy for him because of that. That sucked the life out of him almost as much as school did.

Then it was Chan. Chan was so good to him. So kind and considerate and attentive. He gave Hyunjin all the praise and affection Hyunjin needed to thrive off of. He was there to comfort Hyunjin after a particularly bad day. He made Hyunjin laugh, took him to places he had never been before, made him feel good about himself for once. Made him feel like he was _living_. Chan was everything Hyunjin wanted and more.

But Chan left. He left to go back to Australia. Hyunjin almost begged him to take him with him. Chan would have refused. But Chan wouldn’t stay, either. He missed home too much.

Chan hurt him. He really, really hurt him.

But the one who destroyed him was Baby.

Baby, the pet fox. The goddamned pet fox was what ruined Hyunjin’s life.

Baby never felt like a pet, though. Baby felt more like a life-long companion. Like someone who understood Hyunjin better than anyone, who cheered Hyunjin up more than anyone, who made Hyunjin smile and laugh more than anyone. Who seemed to love Hyunjin more than anyone, and the one Hyunjin probably loved more than anyone else too.

The one who let Hyunjin down more than anyone.

Hyunjin didn’t know what he expected—it was a wild animal, for God’s sake. It didn’t understand Hyunjin. It didn’t care for Hyunjin on the same level as another human being. It only stuck around because Hyunjin cared for it and gave it food and shelter. That was all. So the moment Hyunjin went too far in trying to get it to respond to him, it lashed out and gave Hyunjin the nasty scar on his right hand.

Or, that’s what Hyunjin tried telling himself to make it easier to swallow. Why else would Baby attack him and then run away?

Except, as the lonely, meaningless days went by, Hyunjin found himself recalling the way Baby would curl up with him at night, the way he would lick away the tears on Hyunjin’s face in his own fox way of comforting him, the way he would stare at him with so much attention and clarity in his eyes whenever Hyunjin talked to him for hours and hours. Hyunjin thought about all of those circumstances and couldn’t bring himself to believe any longer that Baby was just some selfish wild animal. Baby was something else entirely. Baby truly was Hyunjin’s companion. His best friend.

And yet he still ran away in the end. He still left Hyunjin all alone during a time when Hyunjin needed him the most. It broke Hyunjin’s heart over and over again whenever he thought about it.

Hyunjin initially tried to reason with himself that Baby hadn’t _really_ meant to run away. That Baby had gotten out of the apartment on accident, wandered off, and gotten lost. That Baby hadn’t willingly left. But that didn’t explain how the sliding glass door—which had been _locked_ when Hyunjin went to the emergency room—was suddenly open just enough for a tiny pet fox to slip through. Hyunjin knew Baby had figured out how to open doors. He’d seen him do it before. Baby had left him willingly.

Yeah, life was just…awful.

Hyunjin had started questioning what made life worth living a few months ago. At the time, he knew it was just a temporary low and that things would get better. It would just be a rough couple of months before he found something that sparked life into him again.

He had thought Baby and Chan were those sparks. But he had been so wrong.

Now, Hyunjin thought about dying on a regular basis. He mostly thought about how he wouldn’t be leaving anything worthwhile behind. That was what scared him the most—that his entire short existence in this world had been for nothing. That there was nothing worth mentioning. That he would be forgotten just as quickly as he came.

In all honesty, it stressed him out. He did _not_ need more stress in his life, and yet here he was, having a midlife crisis when he wasn’t even middle-aged. It should have been a wakeup call. It should have triggered him to find something to make his life worthwhile. But instead it just caused him to sink deeper and deeper as he realized he would never be able to find that something.

The only reason Hyunjin hadn’t seriously contemplated suicide was Seungmin. Seungmin lived on the other side of the country, but he was set to move to the same city as Hyunjin within a few months. Hyunjin was excited. Or maybe he was desperate. Probably both. Regardless, it was the one speck of light in all of this darkness that kept Hyunjin going. If he could just hold out for a couple more months, he’d have a friend again.

Holding out for a couple months didn’t seem so bad. Better than holding out for years. All Hyunjin had to do was focus on getting through each day. That’s all.

He managed, somewhat. It wasn’t pretty. It had too many breakdowns in school or work bathrooms or in a tight, little ball on his bed. It had too many skipped days, too many days spent in bed, too many skipped meals and showers. But he managed.

Then, finally, it was summer. No school. Just work. But work could be tolerated as long as Seungmin was here.

The first thing Seungmin did when he saw Hyunjin was break out into a full-on grin that made his face glow and his eyes turn into crescents. Then he pulled Hyunjin into a crushing hug, one that Hyunjin had sorely needed. Naturally, Hyunjin cried, but this time it was more out of relief and happiness than anything else.

He spent the entire first week with Seungmin. He helped him move in to his new studio apartment. They ordered takeout and used cardboard boxes as a table, then watched dramas on Seungmin’s laptop until they fell asleep. They went furniture shopping and grocery shopping and furniture shopping again and then just ended up ordering some things online. After unpacking and moving everything in, they took a few days to just explore the city. Hyunjin took Seungmin to his favorite restaurants and cafés and stores and amusement parks and museums. They took way too many pictures and spent way too much money, but Hyunjin wasn’t worried. For the first time in so long, he was happy.

In the second week, Hyunjin finally told Seungmin everything that had been going on. Some of it Seungmin already knew, like how Chan had moved back to Australia and how Baby had torn Hyunjin’s hand wide open, but it was still a four-hour conversation, one that went into the wee hours of the morning. Both of them were crying by the end of it.

But after that talk, a huge weight was lifted off of Hyunjin’s shoulders. Seungmin convinced him to get some help. Go see a therapist. And to start looking for another job. Something simple that could pay the bills that didn’t suck the life out of him like modeling did. Usually Hyunjin would resist, but now…he wanted to get better.

He wanted to hope that maybe, just maybe, he would find a way to fall in love with life again.

*

“Hey,” Seungmin said to Hyunjin over the phone in the way that told Hyunjin he was having a bad day.

“Hey,” Hyunjin said.

“Want to hang out?”

“You don’t even need to ask.”

Hyunjin showed up at Seungmin’s door twenty minutes later with their usual coffee orders in hand. He smiled at the way Seungmin’s face lit up with surprise at the sight of his favorite drink.

“Thought you needed a pick-me-up,” Hyunjin said.

“You’re the best, you know that?” Seungmin said.

Hyunjin shrugged, still smiling. “On occasion.”

He expected Seungmin to step aside and let him through the door like he usually did, but instead, Seungmin stepped through the door and shut it behind him. After locking it, he took Hyunjin’s hand and led him down the hall to the elevators.

“Where are we going?” Hyunjin asked, swinging their hands.

“Anywhere,” Seungmin said. “I’m in the mood to be spontaneous.”

Hyunjin snorted. “When have you ever been spontaneous in your life? Usually you have every second of every day planned out.”

Seungmin was silent as they waited for the elevator. As it dinged, his face grew somewhat sheepish and smug. “Okay, so _maybe_ I planned out a few places I’d like to go, but until I find those exact places, I’m fine with just wandering around and going wherever.”

Hyunjin rolled his eyes, but he was still smiling. Typical Seungmin. But Hyunjin loved him.

They ended up heading in the direction of the river. There were some businesses on their own boardwalk of sorts that faced the water, so the two of them walked along there. They stopped for a quick snack at a café and got some ice cream before continuing on their walk, during which Seungmin seemed to stop every five feet to take a picture.

“You should have been a photography major,” Hyunjin remarked with a smirk.

“Nah, I don’t want to turn a hobby into a career.” Seungmin shrugged. “It would suck the fun out of it.”

“Must be nice to have a hobby,” Hyunjin said.

“Photography can be your hobby too,” Seungmin said.

“Maybe,” is all Hyunjin said.

They walked a bit more before Seungmin paused once again. He squinted against the sunlight as he looked at a store on the corner, then smiled at Hyunjin. “You know what else can be your hobby? _Reading_.” He pointed at the store, and Hyunjin groaned.

“No, come on—” Hyunjin protested.

“We’re going in!” Seungmin grabbed Hyunjin’s wrist and pulled him into the bookstore. Hyunjin groaned again but gave up in trying to resist. They walked right through the front door, ringing the little bell above the door as they did. The smell of ink, paper, leather, and a bit of vanilla washed over Hyunjin all at once. He breathed in deeply despite himself, somewhat relieved that this little place didn’t have the musty, old smell of a used bookstore or the overpowering old-lady perfume he associated with some other locally-owned shops. It smelled…homey, almost.

“Hello!” a bright, accented voice greeted. It belonged to a guy standing on a ladder by one of the tall bookshelves, a box of books balanced on the very top of it. He grinned widely at them. “Welcome to Lost Stars Bookstore! Anything I can help you with today?”

“No, that’s okay—” Hyunjin started to say when Seungmin blurted, “ _Felix?_ ”

“Seungmin?” the guy responded, his eyes widening with recognition. “Holy shit! Kim Seungmin! _The_ Kim Seungmin!”

“I haven’t seen you in years!” Seungmin grinned from ear-to-ear as the guy—Felix—climbed down from the ladder.

“I know, right?” Felix threw his arms out. “It feels like forever!”

Seungmin hugged him, and Felix hugged him back. The way the two of them laughed together made Hyunjin somewhat uncomfortable and jealous. He had never heard of someone named Felix before. Seungmin had never mentioned him.

“What brings you to town?” Felix asked, stepping back from the hug and beaming up at Seungmin. The guy was practically the embodiment of sunshine itself. He just radiated warmth, with his tanned skin and Bambi eyes and pink hair and—were those _freckles_?

Hyunjin was staring, he knew, but he couldn’t help it. Felix was so effortlessly pretty…maybe Hyunjin was a little jealous. This guy looked like he was pretty on the outside _and_ on the inside. Must be nice.

Seungmin had been in the middle of rambling off his life’s story to Felix when he suddenly said, “Oh!” His eyes widened as he remembered that Hyunjin was standing there. “Felix! This is my best friend, Hyunjin. Hyunjin, this is Felix. We met in a foreign exchange group in our first year of college.”

“This guy saved my life, I swear.” Felix gestured to Seungmin and laughed. “I would not have survived college without him there to guide me through the culture shock.”

Seungmin blushed at that, making Hyunjin snort.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Hyunjin told Felix.

“Nice to meet you too, Hyunjin.” Felix smiled. Then he looked back at Seungmin and exchanged a smile with him, too, and Hyunjin suddenly felt like he was intruding on something…personal.

“I’m just gonna…yeah.” Hyunjin gestured vaguely to the rest of the store. Seungmin just nodded and waved him off, already starting up a new conversation with Felix. Hyunjin fought the urge to roll his eyes and walked away, wandering deeper into the store.

It wasn’t a very big store; there was one main room, with the front doors and the front windows that let sunlight come pouring in, and the counter with the cash register in the very back. Then there was a second and third room, the third being the smallest. Hyunjin wandered through the rooms, scanning the bookshelves for any genre that might be somewhat interesting. Seungmin and Felix’s bright voices and laughter echoed through the otherwise empty shop, while the floors creaked wherever Hyunjin stepped.

It was peaceful in here, though Hyunjin didn’t know why. He had never really been a reader. Maybe it was because it didn’t feel like the real world; rather, it felt like its own pocket world, hidden away from all the chaos of what lay beyond it.

Hyunjin shook his head and rolled his eyes at himself. He was being overly sentimental about a goddamn bookstore. He needed to chill.

He stopped in front of a particular shelf. It was an entire section on animals, right next to a section on astronomy. Hyunjin began to scan the titles for anything interesting. As he did so, he reached out and let his fingers trail over the spines before coming to a rest on one single book. _Foxes,_ it said. Hyunjin pulled it out and read the summary on the back despite the familiar ache in his chest and the sickness swirling in his stomach. He flipped through the book, looking only at the pictures. A smile made its way onto his face. Foxes were still so cute. But none of them were as cute as Baby. None of them had Baby’s eyes. Baby’s eyes were so…unique. Warm. Familiar.

Hyunjin quickly put the book back before the pain and longing threatened to spill out of him in the form of tears.

The astronomy books were cool. There was one all on the myths behind the constellations. That might be interesting. Hyunjin selected it and an impressive book with all of the photos Hubble had taken and continued browsing.

Seungmin and Felix were right where Hyunjin left them when he finally finished looking around. He rolled his eyes again and decided he might as well buy his books. Maybe by then the two of them would wrap up. Or maybe Hyunjin would just have to sit in one of the plush armchairs by the windows and start reading his books.

He stepped up to the counter. There was no one behind it. Maybe Felix was the only one working today...?

Hyunjin still didn’t want to interrupt, so he just leaned against the counter and waited. He just so happened to glance down behind the counter and frowned when he saw someone there.

Hyunjin cleared his throat, but the person behind the counter didn’t react. If Hyunjin didn’t know any better, he’d say this person was hiding.

Hyunjin cleared his throat a bit more pointedly before saying, “Um, excuse me?”

The person finally looked up. His eyes locked with Hyunjin’s, and for a moment Hyunjin was caught off-guard. Those eyes were so big, so warm, so familiar. Hyunjin had seen them before.

He quickly blinked to snap himself out of it, right as the boy hiding behind the counter said, “Oh. Hi.”

“Hi,” Hyunjin said, forcing a polite smile. He couldn’t look away from those eyes. “Uh, whatcha doing down there? Hiding?”

“What?” The boy’s eyes widened before glancing down. “Oh. Uh, no. Not hiding. Just, um, looking for something.”

“Like what?”

“Um. A...pen.” The boy gave a curt nod, his face growing more confident. “Yes. I dropped a pen. And now it’s gone. But that’s fine. There are more pens.” He stood up quickly.

Hyunjin raised his eyebrows at the boy. The boy was tall. As tall as Hyunjin. Probably still growing, too. But he was also...adorable. Maybe it had to do with the red, tousled hair hanging in his eyes—those lovely, beautiful eyes—or his soft features or the way he held himself, like he was afraid of taking up too much room.

Maybe it also had to do with the fact that Hyunjin couldn’t help thinking he had _seen_ this kid before. He just seemed so _familiar._ But Hyunjin knew he never would have forgotten a face like that. But how else could he explain this nagging in the back of his head?

It was the nagging that made Hyunjin blurt, “Have we met?”

“What?” Panic flashed in the boy’s eyes as he blinked at Hyunjin like he had been caught doing something he shouldn’t. Oh, so he was also staring at Hyunjin. Hyunjin felt a little bit relieved knowing he hadn’t been the only one.

“Sorry,” Hyunjin said quickly, already feeling his face heating up. “Uh, you just look really familiar. I thought I had met you somewhere else.”

“Oh.” The boy blinked again before he smiled at Hyunjin. Hyunjin practically melted. Who gave this kid the right to have a smile like _that_? So pure and blinding with _dimples_ to top it off? Hyunjin wanted to combust right here and now. “You look familiar too,” the boy said.

Hyunjin sighed. “Yeah, I’m unfortunately a model. You might have seen me in ads or something.”

“Maybe,” the boy said with a shrug.

That wasn’t the usual reaction Hyunjin got when he said he was a model. It surprised him enough to stare at the boy for a few seconds. The boy just smiled at him before gesturing to Hyunjin’s books.

“Did you find everything okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, for the most part.” Hyunjin pushed the books towards him. “I’m not really a reader.”

“Me either!”

Hyunjin couldn’t help snorting. “But you work in a bookstore…?”

“It’s something to do,” the boy replied. “Besides, I’m not, um, very good at…reading.” His eyes darted away.

Hyunjin frowned, watching the way the boy’s shoulders hunched up in an effort to make him look smaller.

“You can’t read?” Hyunjin asked.

“Um…” the boy didn’t look up at him and instead focused on scanning the books. He paused when he saw the book on constellations.

Something clicked in Hyunjin’s head. “Oh, do you have dyslexia?”

“What?” The boy looked up, confusion flashing in his eyes.

“Is that why you can’t really read?”

The boy stared at him for a split second before saying, “Right. Yes. I have dyslexia. It makes reading really difficult.”

“Oh my gosh, that must be really hard,” Hyunjin said. “I mean, I’m not that big of a reader anyways, but every now and then I like to read something just to kind of…escape. Honestly, part of the reason why I picked this book was because of the pictures.” He pointed at the book on the Hubble telescope and laughed.

The boy grinned at that. “Astronomy, huh?” he said.

“Yeah, they seemed interesting.” Hyunjin shrugged. “I’ve stargazed before, when I went camping with my parents. It’d be nice to know why the constellations are the way they are.”

“What’s your favorite constellation?”

“Mm, I don’t know.” Hyunjin thought for a moment. “Maybe…Canis Major. The dog.”

The boy smiled. “Mine’s Vulpecula. The fox.”

“There’s a fox constellation?” Hyunjin blinked in surprise.

The boy’s smile widened, revealing those dimples again. “Yeah. It’s…not very well-known, though. It’s very small and dim. Probably not visible here through all the city lights.”

“Huh,” Hyunjin said. “Damn, I wish I would have known about it sooner. That would have been the perfect name for my pet fox.”

The boy’s eyes widened. “A pet fox?”

“Yeah, I used to have a pet fox but…not anymore.” Hyunjin looked down at the counter to avoid the boy’s gaze. “Though, Vulpecula is a bit of a mouthful. I named him ‘Baby’ instead, just because he was so cute…”

When the boy didn’t say anything, Hyunjin quickly cleared his throat and said, “But anyways. I’ll have to look for that constellation the next time I go camping.” He smiled.

The boy glanced up and smiled back. Then he looked back down, almost shyly, as he read out the total payment due for Hyunjin’s books. Hyunjin pulled out his credit card and handed it over. He saw the way the boy’s eyes lingered on Hyunjin’s hand. On his scar. Hyunjin jerked back out of instinct and lowered his gaze. In actuality, it wasn’t even that it was an ugly thing that destroyed his appearance or anything. But he hated the sight of it all the same. It was too much of a reminder of everything he’d lost.

The boy looked away the moment Hyunjin jerked his hand back, though. Almost as if he was ashamed of being caught. Hyunjin noticed that the boy’s hands trembled slightly as he handed back the credit card. They continued to shake even as he pulled out a bag to put the books in.

“Here you go,” the boy said, avoiding Hyunjin’s gaze as he handed Hyunjin the bag.

“Thanks,” Hyunjin said. The awkwardness that hung in the air was palpable.

“Have a good day,” the boy said.

“You too.” Then, with that, Hyunjin flashed the boy a brief smile. The boy just looked away.

Seungmin and Felix were _still_ deep in conversation. Hyunjin had to practically drag Seungmin out of the store after Seungmin and Felix exchanged numbers and promised to hang out soon. Even as Hyunjin and Seungmin started to make their way back home, Seungmin smiled to himself, seeming to practically glow.

Hyunjin smiled a little too, his mind already on the boy from the bookstore. And the boy stayed on his mind for the rest of the day and well into the night. Even though he barely knew the kid—Hyunjin hadn’t even gotten his name—he wanted to know more about him. He couldn’t explain it—something about that bookstore and that boy just tugged at his heart and caused this strange feeling to settle into his gut. It made him think that he and that boy were meant to cross paths.

Hyunjin just hoped that their paths would cross again.

*

It took another week or so before Hyunjin found himself back in the Lost Stars Bookstore. Unfortunately, due to his crazy, soul-sucking schedule, he didn’t really have time or money to spare. But one day he had such a rotten time at work and was not in the mood to go back to his empty apartment full of nothing but ghosts from a happier time. Seungmin was busy, so that left Hyunjin with few options.

He didn’t even really process where he was going. His mind and body just went on autopilot.

The familiar twinkling of a bell as he pushed the door open brought him out of whatever daze he was in. It was around dinner time, and Hyunjin figured the store would be closed by now, but instead it was still open and just as empty as it had been the first time Hyunjin stepped through the door. He didn’t mind, really. He actually preferred it that way, as long as one specific person was still there.

Hyunjin’s eyes went straight ahead, right to the cash register. He found himself smiling out of habit when he recognized the red hair and the tall figure hunched over the counter.

The boy was there, his elbows resting on the counter as he stared down at a mug of tea, his mind clearly elsewhere. He didn’t react to the bell and the sound of the door opening. He didn’t even react to Hyunjin walking up to him until Hyunjin said softly, as not to scare him, “Hi.”

The boy jumped and knocked over the mug. It hit the counter and spilled over the edge.

“Oh no.” The boy rushed to clean up the mess, using the sleeve of his shirt to soak up the tea.

“Here, let me help,” Hyunjin said, moving forward to help. He picked the mug up and set it upright and out of the puddle, though of course he had the same idea to soak up the tea with his sweatshirt sleeve. He couldn’t help snorting, thinking two adults could come up with something better than their sleeves to clean up a mess.

“Oh, great, Woojin’s gonna kill me,” the boy groaned, his face full of distress. “Why am I so clumsy?”

“It’s my fault, I’m so sorry,” Hyunjin said. He didn’t know who Woojin was, but he assumed it was the manager or owner. “I shouldn’t have scared you like that.”

“No, it’s my fault.” The boy sighed. “I should have been paying attention.” He glanced up, peeking shyly through his bangs. Hyunjin’s heart squeezed at the sight. When Hyunjin gave him a small smile, the boy quickly looked down again. Despite their combined efforts, there was still a puddle on the counter and still some of it dripping down the front side of the counter. And now both of their sleeves were soaking wet.

“Guess we had the same idea,” Hyunjin said with a little laugh.

“Yeah.” The boy laughed too. “I—um—there’s some paper towels somewhere…wait here.” He ran off, his sleeve dripping tea as he went. Hyunjin couldn’t help snorting at the sight.

The boy came back with an entire roll of paper towels. He pulled a huge wad off of them and slapped it down onto the puddle. Hyunjin couldn’t help laughing.

“You don’t need that many,” he said, tearing the paper towels apart and folding them into halves before pressing them down into the puddle.

“Oh.” The boy blushed. “I guess I overreacted.”

Hyunjin just smiled at him as he cleaned up the mess. The boy just stood there awkwardly, like he wasn’t sure what to do.

“There,” Hyunjin said when all the tea was wiped up. “All clean.”

“Thank you.” The boy still wouldn’t meet his gaze.

“Sorry again for scaring you. I thought you heard me come in.”

“I should have.” The boy sighed again. “I was zoning out on the job. Again.”

“Well, in your defense, it is pretty dead right now.” Hyunjin glanced around the store. “I was honestly surprised you were still open this late. Don’t you close at five?”

The boy’s eyes widened as he quickly looked at the clock, which read half-past six. “Yes, we do. Close at five.” He sighed a third time and covered his face with his hands. “I’m awful at this.”

“Do you need me to leave?” Hyunjin asked.

“No!” the boy exclaimed as he looked up, his eyes wide. He seemed to realize a beat later that he had shouted and lowered his voice to a normal volume as he said, “No, it’s fine. I’ll just close up now and let you out when you want to leave.”

Hyunjin smiled. “Sounds good. Anything I can help with?”

“Oh, uh.” The boy glanced around. “No. Woojin wants me to do it.” He sighed for what felt like the umpteenth time. “This is the first time he trusted me to close the shop and I can’t even do that right.”

“Hey, don’t worry,” Hyunjin said, wanting to reach out and hug him. His face was so sad and defeated. “Everybody makes mistakes. I’m sure he’ll forgive you.”

The boy just shrugged.

When neither of them said anything for a few moments, Hyunjin said, “By the way, I know this is kind of late, but I’m Hyunjin.”

“I know,” the boy said.

Hyunjin frowned. “You do?”

The boy blinked before quickly backtracking. “I mean, I knew from the first time you walked in. Er—I heard Felix say it. It was quiet in here and Felix is loud so…yeah.”

“Oh,” Hyunjin said.

“I’m Jeongin,” the boy said.

“I know,” Hyunjin said.

Jeongin’s eyes widened hopefully. “Really?”

“No, I’m just teasing you.” Hyunjin grinned.

Jeongin’s shoulders slumped as his face fell. “Oh,” he said, looking away.

“Sorry, that was insensitive,” Hyunjin said quickly, the guilt already wrapping around his heart as he saw how disappointed Jeongin was. “I was just trying to lighten the mood a little but it didn’t come out that way.”

“It’s okay.” Jeongin flashed a smile. “I forgive you.”

Hyunjin smiled back. “Okay.”

Another awkward silence followed, this time broken by Jeongin realizing that he had yet to lock up the store. He quickly grabbed the keys and started to walk away, only to pause and turn back to Hyunjin.

“Please don’t take anything from the cash register,” he said.

“I won’t, I promise,” Hyunjin said.

Jeongin nodded before walking away, completely trusting of Hyunjin, just like that. Not that Hyunjin would ever steal, but it was still surprising.

When Jeongin finished locking up, he turned off the lights of the store and headed out the back door, to a small foyer area with a staircase that led up to the second level. Hyunjin followed. He waited as Jeongin locked that back door and then turned to face him.

“I guess I’ll have to come back when you guys _aren’t_ supposed to be closed,” Hyunjin said with a smile.

“Oh.” Jeongin blinked, then frowned. “You could always come upstairs. I could make us some tea.” He paused as doubt crossed his face before adding, “Maybe.”

“You live up there?” Hyunjin pointed up the staircase.

Jeongin nodded. “With Woojin.”

“And Woojin is the owner?”

Jeongin nodded again. “He’s not here right now. Went to visit some friends. But he’ll be back soon, I hope. I don’t really like being there by myself. It’s so…lonely.”

Hyunjin wasn’t entirely sure if it was smart of Jeongin to just rattle off all this information to a perfect stranger. Maybe Jeongin was just too naïve. Hyunjin hoped he didn’t tell this to anyone who walked in and started up a conversation with him.

“How old are you?” Hyunjin found himself asking.

Jeongin blinked. “Um…”

“Never mind,” Hyunjin said quickly as Jeongin seemed to think for too long. “Don’t answer that. That’s weird. You shouldn’t be telling strangers how old you are and where you live. That’s not safe at all.”

“You’re not a stranger, though,” Jeongin said with a frown.

Hyunjin arched an eyebrow at that. “We just formally met, like, five minutes ago, Jeongin.”

“Oh.” Jeongin’s shoulders slumped again. “Right.”

“Please don’t go telling anyone what you just told me, though,” Hyunjin said. “Really, it’s not safe. At all. You can’t trust anyone. Not even me.”

Jeongin just nodded, staring down at the floor like some scolded puppy.

_Baby used to do that._

Hyunjin shook his head to quickly clear it. Why was he thinking of Baby right now?

“Sorry,” Jeongin said.

“It’s alright.” Hyunjin smiled, trying to cheer him up. “I, uh, should probably go, anyways.”

He started to turn towards the door when Jeongin spoke up again.

“Can I ask you something?”

Hyunjin paused. “Uh, yeah. Sure. Go ahead.”

“Why did you come to the shop tonight?” Jeongin looked at him curiously. There was a little spark of hope in his eyes. Hyunjin didn’t understand it.

“Um…” Hyunjin shrugged. “I dunno. Just felt like it.”

Jeongin’s eyes widened at that, filling with a little bit more hope.

“I guess I just had a bad day and wanted to go somewhere peaceful,” Hyunjin said.

Jeongin nodded. “So, will you come back again?”

Hyunjin was starting to get the feeling that the reason Jeongin acted so much younger than his true age was because he didn’t have much socialization as a kid. Maybe his parents were always gone. Maybe he didn’t have any friends. Maybe both. Now, to cope, he was latching onto anyone who gave him the slightest bit of attention.

It hurt Hyunjin’s heart, like he needed to protect this kid more than anything.

So he smiled and said, “Sure. I’ll come back.”

Jeongin positively beamed at that.

Yeah, he was probably one lonely, desperate kid.

But deep down, was Hyunjin so different?

“Okay.” Jeongin was grinning from ear-to-ear. “See you later, then, Hyunjin.”

“See you later, Jeongin.” Hyunjin smiled back.

*

Hyunjin started thinking more and more about Jeongin as the days went on. He couldn’t help thinking about how sad Jeongin looked, how his face lit up and then fell again at the slightest things. How he shared too much too quickly. It was possible that Jeongin had some issues, maybe some underlying trauma, and even though Hyunjin barely knew him and was not a mental health expert in any way, he wanted to help. The kid looked like he needed a friend.

Hyunjin also couldn’t help wondering if maybe—just maybe—he found a way to help Jeongin and make him happy, then he could find happiness as well.

Which was probably more of the reason behind why he found himself dragging Seungmin to the Lost Stars Bookstore a few days later. It was a Sunday, one of Hyunjin’s few days off, and it just so happened to be a gorgeous day out. Hyunjin wanted nothing more than to just get out of his stuffy apartment and go for a walk by the river. And to stop by a certain bookstore on the way back.

The familiar ringing of the bell and the smell of the store brought a smile to Hyunjin’s face as he stepped inside. It was a bit busier today, with more older ladies, a couple kids, and a teenager or two. Hyunjin slipped past them and kept his attention straight ahead, at the counter.

There was someone else buying their books at the counter, blocking Hyunjin’s view of the employee behind it. But once that person finally left, Hyunjin felt his heart lift hopefully.

“Hiya, Hyunjin!” Felix said with a bright grin from behind the counter.

“Oh,” Hyunjin said, his heart sinking. “Hi, Felix.”

“And Seungminnie!” Felix’s face somehow brightened even further at the sight of Seungmin at Hyunjin’s elbow. “It’s so good to see you again!”

“Sorry I haven’t been around lately, things have gotten a little busy,” Seungmin said with a warm smile as he stepped up to the counter. He leaned his forearms on it. “I’ve missed you, though.”

“I’ve missed you too,” Felix said.

Before the two of them could get lost in each other’s eyes, though, Hyunjin interrupted, “Is Jeongin working today, Felix?”

“Hm?” Felix tore his eyes away from Seungmin and blinked up at Hyunjin. “Oh, Innie? No, he’s not here today. Woojin only lets him work a couple days of week—usually the less busy days, since he gets too overwhelmed. He’s not that used to humans yet, so—” he cut himself off, his eyes widening before he quickly added, “But I’ll tell him you said hi!”

Hyunjin couldn’t help frowning at that, but he decided to let it slide. “Oh, okay. That would be great. Thanks.” He smiled.

“No problem!” Felix beamed back at him before looking back at Seungmin. “I get off at five if you want to do something tonight.”

“I’d love to,” Seungmin said.

Hyunjin tuned them out again. He was happy for Seungmin—he really was—but right now his hopes for a good day had been crushed. Now he kind of just wanted to go home and sulk.

He briefly thought about going upstairs and knocking on the door to the apartment, but he shoved _that_ idea out of his head almost immediately. Jeongin should enjoy his day off without Hyunjin being some creep and tracking him down.

But still, he couldn’t help looking up and over his shoulder at the apartment over the bookstore as he and Seungmin left the store. He could have sworn that there was a face in the open window that disappeared the moment Hyunjin looked at it. But he decided his eyes were playing tricks on him, so he shook his head and continued on with his walk with Seungmin.

*

“Did you see that?” Jisung piped up. “He totally looked!”

“Don’t give me hope,” Jeongin said, even though he was grinning to himself from where he was curled up on the couch by the window.

“He looked!” Jisung insisted.

Jeongin peeked through the open window again, still smiling to himself as he watched Hyunjin and Seungmin walk away from the bookstore.

“Do you think he came looking for me, specifically?” Jeongin asked as he folded his arms on the windowsill and rested his chin on them.

“He did,” Jisung said. “He totally did.”

Jeongin’s little heart lifted at that, so full of hope and happiness in this single moment. But the longer he watched Hyunjin walk away, the harder it was to keep this hope and happiness from lasting. It faded away with the smile on his face as he sighed. “He’s never going to know me, though.”

“You never know,” Jisung said. “He seems accepting enough. Besides, if he loves you unconditionally, it won’t matter to him. He’ll love you for you, no matter what form you’re in.”

Jeongin sighed again. “I don’t know, Jisung. I made such a fool out of myself the other night. Not to mention how I suck at running a bookstore by myself.” He covered his face with his hands.

“You’re just learning right now. It’ll get better,” Jisung said. “Trust me.”

While Jeongin did trust Jisung’s intentions, he didn’t always believe the things he said. With the way things were lately, it was difficult for Jeongin to believe that any of this could turn out the way he wanted. It was difficult to believe that he would ever get _anything_ he wanted.

Right now, he wanted to prove to Woojin that he could do things by himself, that he wasn’t some helpless, delicate creature that needed its hand held throughout the most basic tasks. But running a shop was _hard_. Dealing with humans all day was _hard_.

Hell, just _being_ human was hard! Jeongin was still getting used to the fact that he had hands and was sent into an existential crisis every time he looked down at them for too long.

This had been the longest adjustment period in Jeongin’s entire existence, even though it had only been going on for a few months. Adjusting to his fox body all that time ago hadn’t been difficult at all. Compared to learning how to be human, his entire time as a fox had been a breeze. In fact, it had been so easy and relatively painless that Jeongin missed it.

He never thought he’d say that. He never thought he’d miss being an animal that couldn’t even communicate or control its urges at times. But he did. He missed being a fox so much that whenever he was too overwhelmed and panicked in his human form, he instantly shifted into a fox again. And since shifting took enough energy out of him as it was, it usually took him several hours to gain enough strength to shift back into human form.

Because Jeongin’s shifting abilities were so unpredictable, Woojin didn’t let him do a lot of things. It had taken a month for Woojin to let him even meet Felix (for reasons Jeongin didn’t understand) and then another month before Woojin had let him set foot in the shop. Even now, he didn’t let Jeongin leave the shop by himself or go wandering around the city in his human form. (Not that Jeongin was even _comfortable_ enough to go wandering around in his human form, even with Felix or Woojin). Woojin had only recently trusted Jeongin with running the shop by himself, and it was really only during the times when Woojin knew the shop would be mostly dead.

Woojin was strict, but he did it with the best intentions for Jeongin in mind. And Jeongin trusted him. After all, Woojin was the one who knew what he was doing. Woojin was the one who had been through all of this before. Woojin was the one who had saved Jeongin by taking him in when Jeongin had nowhere else to go. Woojin was the one who had taught Jeongin everything Jeongin knew currently about shifting and being human. The least Jeongin could do was be obedient and trusting.

But still, Jeongin couldn’t help wishing that he was brave enough to go out in the world by himself, just to see Hyunjin again.

He never even thought he’d see Hyunjin again. The first time Hyunjin stepped into the store, it had felt like a dream. Jeongin had stared at him like he had dropped out of the sky. And then the moment he saw that it was not, in fact, a dream, and that Hyunjin could catch him staring and think he was weird and immediately dislike him, Jeongin panicked. He hid behind the counter, hoping that Hyunjin wouldn’t actually buy anything and leave quickly.

Of course that hadn’t happened. Jeongin had been so embarrassed when Hyunjin found him like that. Luckily, Hyunjin didn’t seem to think Jeongin was weird. He didn’t seem to hate Jeongin immediately. Instead, he seemed to…to _like_ Jeongin. The way he smiled at Jeongin reminded Jeongin of all the times they had spent together, all the happy times Jeongin desperately wanted to go back to.

And then Hyunjin had asked, “Have we met?” and Jeongin swore he felt himself ascend to another plane of existence.

_Hyunjin recognized him???_

Just that simple conversation lit a spark of hope in Jeongin’s chest. That spark only grew when Hyunjin came back to the store a few days later, looking for _him._ For him, Jeongin. It still felt unreal whenever Jeongin thought about it.

The hope wasn’t always constant. Sometimes it sputtered and died, usually on the days Jeongin didn’t see Hyunjin. On those days, he was afraid that he was never going to see Hyunjin again. But Hyunjin always came back, and the hope always returned with him.

Except now, Jeongin inevitably found himself hoping for _more_. It wasn’t enough to just see Hyunjin and have a short conversation with him. He wanted to be with Hyunjin as often as before, to create that connection that they had had back when Jeongin was a fox.

He wanted that connection and _more_.

“Do you think he remembers me?” he asked Minho one night when he couldn’t sleep.

“Of course he does,” Minho said.

“Do you think he misses me? Or do you think he hates me for leaving?”

“He might have hated you right after you left. But I’m sure that hatred has faded away by now. I think he misses you more than anything.”

“I’ve thought about going back,” Jeongin said. “I’ve thought about shifting and visiting every now and then.”

“Why don’t you?” Minho asked.

“Woojin said it’s not a good idea. That I should get used to staying in human form only.” Jeongin paused for a moment before admitting, “He also said that I should get used to living without Hyunjin now. He said our lives are separate now and should stay that way.”

“Of course he said that,” Minho said with a roll of his eyes. Ever since Jeongin had shifted into his human form, he could see Minho and Jisung’s humanoid features more clearly. They weren’t very prominent, but every now and then Jeongin could see a ripple and a flash in Jisung’s brightness that reminded him of a smile, or a shifting in the surface of the moon that looked like Minho making a face. It was more of an impression than anything. If he thought about it too much, he wouldn’t be able to see it. It was something he had to just…feel. Apparently most humans couldn’t see that, though.

Minho’s comment made Jeongin frown. “What do you mean?”

“Oh, come on, Jeongin, aren’t you a little curious as to _why_ Woojin has all these rules for you?”

“Because he wants the best for me. And because he knows best, since he’s lived this before.”

Minho snorted at that. “Oh, yes, he knows best. Jeongin, he’s only going off of his own experiences. He has all these rules to keep you from doing things that _he_ did. From doing things that _he_ thought were mistakes.”

Jeongin blinked at that, his frown deepening.

“Have you ever wondered what Woojin’s experiences on Earth were? Have you ever wondered what he’s done during his time here? He hasn’t just sat around in a bookstore, let me tell you.”

“You mean…Woojin’s hiding things from me?”

“And then some,” Minho said. “But don’t ask _me_ about it—I only know a bit more than you, since Woojin liked to hide from Jisung and I for so long. But something tells me that he’s done more than you think. It might be helpful for you to ask him about it. Or, it might be even _more_ helpful for you to find some things out on your own.”

When Jeongin continued to frown, Minho added, “I’m not saying you should rebel completely. But I think, if _you_ truly feel like you’re meant to be with Hyunjin, then maybe you should go out and figure that out for yourself. Don’t let Woojin stand in the way of that just because of some stupid rule based on one experience of his.”

He left Jeongin with more questions than answers.

Jeongin thought about what Minho said for days. He had no shortage of time to think when he was working in the shop. He kept hoping that Hyunjin would come in, but when Hyunjin never appeared, Jeongin inevitably started to wonder if this was a sign. 

What if they really weren’t meant to cross paths again? What if they were meant to live separate lives after all?

How cruel would that be, if Jeongin had created this connection with Hyunjin only to make one mistake that destroyed it forever? What was the point of becoming so close, only to never be with each other again?

Maybe it truly was a sign that Jeongin was foolish in thinking he could ever be with someone. That he would ever have a life-long companion. That he was created to be some lonely creature forever and ever.

No.

He didn’t know who or what made the universe or who or what was controlling it, but Jeongin refused to believe that creatures were created only to be lonely their entire lives. Everyone else had someone—why couldn’t he find someone?

If this truly was a sign, then it would come up again and again until Jeongin couldn’t ignore it anymore. But until then, Jeongin was determined to make this work.

He still felt guilty about going behind Woojin’s back and breaking his rules, though. So he decided to approach Woojin with his plan first in hopes that Woojin would tell him more about what Minho had alluded to.

It took more courage than Jeongin expected. Not that Woojin was scary—he was usually nothing but kind—but he was intimidating at times. After all, he _was_ Ursa Major. He was one of the most powerful constellations out there. Jeongin couldn’t help but be intimidated, even if they were just sitting across from each other at the kitchen table, eating dinner.

Jeongin fidgeted, using a fork instead of chopsticks to eat the sushi Woojin had picked up on his way home from whatever he was doing in the city today. Woojin wasn’t paying attention to him; some nights they rarely talked, mostly just because they were content with doing their own activities. Tonight, Woojin was reading a new book and Jeongin was lost in his thoughts.

Finally Jeongin took a deep breath and forced himself to say, “Woojin?”

“Hm?” Woojin glanced up before turning a page.

“What are you reading?” Ah, so Jeongin wasn’t as brave as he felt.

“A new book written by my good friend, Seo Changbin.”

“Is he the one you went to see today?”

“Yes.” Woojin nodded and smiled before turning back to his book, apparently thinking the conversation was done.

Jeongin swallowed before asking, “What’s it about?”

“It’s a story of how a prince and his best friend switch places when visiting a nearby kingdom. It’s a love story, too, because the best friend falls in love with a guard.” Woojin snorted and smirked at that. “For such a tough, manly exterior, Changbin is really just a soft, cuddly romantic. I like that duality to him.”

“It’s a love story?” Jeongin perked up.

“Mm hmm.” Woojin noticed Jeongin’s wide eyes and smiled. “Do you want me to read it to you when I’m done with it?”

Jeongin nodded. A bit too eagerly.

Woojin laughed softly at that. “Alright.”

“Do you believe in true love?” Jeongin found himself asking.

Woojin shrugged. “I think it’s a bit childish. And disappointing. People think that true love is instantaneous and that it will be perfect, always. They stop putting in the work. So when things get rough, they don’t know how to fix it, and they let things fall apart.” He fell silent for a few moments, during which Jeongin’s eyes had gotten even wider, “True romantic love like that is nothing but painful and destructive in the end. It’s unfulfilling. There are so many more types of love out there that people don’t realize. So, I suppose I’m not entirely against true love, but I think it’s foolish to think that it’s going to be easy and that it will solve all of your problems in the end.”

Jeongin was silent for a few moments as he processed what Woojin said. He must have been silent for too long, because Woojin went back to reading his book.

But then Jeongin said, “So if I was willing to work through some difficulties and solve some mistakes I made, would I be able to save that love?”

“I suppose,” Woojin said. “At the same time, you have to be aware of what’s worth saving and what’s not. What will give back, and what will only suck so much out of you that it’s not worth it in the end. It’s not always easy to recognize. It takes lots of mistakes and pain before you gain the wisdom to know the difference between the two.”  
“I have to go through heartbreak after heartbreak before I find something real?” Jeongin couldn’t help looking wounded.

Woojin shrugged. “It’s just life, Jeongin. It’s part of being human.”

Jeongin didn’t like the sound of that at all. It made him want to be a fox again. But even being a fox had its own heartbreak. Maybe heartbreak wasn’t even exclusive to being human—maybe it was something just a part of existence itself.

Jeongin still went to bed that night with his mind whirling, full of more questions and even less answers than before. It was the kind of constant wondering that kept him awake, kept him restless. He wouldn’t get any sleep like this. So he got up and tiptoed out of the house. He hid the key to the apartment under the mat at the base of the stairs, then slipped out the door and shut it behind him. Once he was sure that no one was around, he shifted into a fox.

“Out for a midnight walk, huh?” Minho said from above as Jeongin trotted down the street.

“I can’t sleep,” Jeongin replied. “You got into my head and now I’m overthinking things. Why does that always happen? Why do I even listen to you anymore?”

“Because you love me, obviously.” There was mirth in Minho’s voice. “Anywhere in particular you’re going?”

“I’ll go wherever my feet lead me,” Jeongin said.

“Try not to get lost,” is all Minho said before he fell silent again, leaving Jeongin to his walk.

Jeongin kept track of where he was going for a bit, but after awhile, he stopped paying attention. He felt himself slipping into that blank state again, one he had associated with his more primal self, one that had been the reason for all of his mistakes. Usually he would panic at slipping back into it so easily, but he knew how to pull himself out of it now.

He pulled himself out of it once a familiar smell hit his nose. The smell of grass and trees and dirt. He was standing on the edge of a park, right by a familiar apartment building.

Jeongin stopped, his heart aching at the sight. He hadn’t been here in months. Did Hyunjin even still live here? On the top floor, right on the end?

Jeongin wanted to see him again. He wanted to see Hyunjin so badly right now that he didn’t resist in the slightest when that blank headspace came back and forced him to walk towards the building.

He climbed right up the fire escape, right to the top, to the balcony where he used to sun himself and watch the world go by, to the sliding glass door, the only thing separating him from the person he cared so much about. He stopped on the edge of the balcony, staring through the glass. The curtains were open slightly. Just enough for Jeongin to peek past, if he wanted.

Did he want to? Would it be healing, or would it be painful?

Jeongin supposed he would find out later. Right now, he just wanted to see Hyunjin.

He stepped forward and pressed his nose up to the glass. The lamp by the couch was on, as well as the light over the kitchen sink. Both lights were enough to illuminate the apartment that hadn’t really changed much in the months since. The only major change Jeongin noticed was the fact that Hyunjin wasn’t there.

He could be at work, still. But it was much later than Hyunjin had ever worked. Maybe he was at Seungmin’s. Or maybe he was out with someone.

That thought made jealousy flicker through Jeongin. He scowled and was about to turn away and head back when the bathroom door opened. From his vantage point on the balcony, he could see the kitchen to the left, the living room and front door to the right, and straight ahead, the small hallway with the bathroom and Hyunjin’s bedroom at the end. He saw the light spill out into the hallway from the bathroom, then disappear as Hyunjin turned off the light. Hyunjin stepped out of the bathroom and into the hallway, his hair damp, his attention only on the phone in his hand. He was turning towards his bedroom.

Jeongin couldn’t let him just walk away without noticing him. In the back of his mind, he knew he shouldn’t make his presence known, that he should just move on and wait to see Hyunjin in person at the bookstore instead, but he couldn’t help it. The desperation took hold of him and forced the loud yip from his mouth.

Hyunjin paused, his back still to the balcony. But he didn’t turn around. Maybe he hadn’t heard Jeongin.

Jeongin barked again, a bit louder, the sound echoing out here on the balcony before being swallowed up by the sounds of the city. Hyunjin heard it before it disappeared, though. He heard it, and he turned to look at the balcony.

Hyunjin’s eyes locked with Jeongin’s, and Jeongin felt that spark of hope ignite in his chest again.

For a moment, they just stared at each other, where Hyunjin was trying to figure out if Jeongin was real, and Jeongin was trying to tell him that he was.

Then Hyunjin let out a gasp that could have also been a sob and ran forward. He pulled open the sliding glass door and dropped to his knees so he was just barely above eye-level with Jeongin.

Jeongin wanted to rush into his arms, but he held himself back, remembering the last time they had met like this.

Hyunjin seemed to remember too, because he kept the space in between them as he asked in a soft voice, “Baby?”

Jeongin whimpered at that, turning his ears towards Hyunjin in an attempt to show that he understood.

_It’s me_ , he wanted to say. _It’s me. I’m back._

“Baby,” Hyunjin said again, his face full of relief and happiness. “Oh my god, it’s really you, isn’t it? You came back? You came back to me?” He reached out, probably out of instinct, only to freeze. Both of their eyes went to the scar on that hand. Jeongin whimpered again. He wanted to show Hyunjin that he didn’t mean it, that he would never ever hurt him like that again. But how could he do that when any movement towards Hyunjin made Hyunjin jerk backwards out of fear?

Jeongin moved forward slowly, his eyes on Hyunjin’s. He tried to look pointedly at the scar on Hyunjin’s hand, to show that he meant no harm. Hyunjin must have understood somewhat, because he didn’t pull away. Instead, he let Jeongin step up and lick the scar.

Hyunjin exhaled as Jeongin drew back, the tenseness fading from his shoulders. “You remember?” he asked. “You remember doing that?”

Jeongin lowered his head.

“Is this you apologizing?” Hyunjin asked. “For hurting me? For leaving? God, why did you leave, Baby? Was it an accident? Or did you really hate it here so much? Did you really hate me so much that you just…had to get away?” His voice grew quieter and quieter with each question until his voice was barely above a cracked whisper. Tears filled his eyes.

Jeongin almost couldn’t believe his ears. Hyunjin thought… _Jeongin_ hated _him_? How could Jeongin ever hate Hyunjin?

Jeongin wanted to hug him, to tell him that he would never think such a thing, to tell him that he never wanted to leave, but of course he couldn’t. He wasn’t in human form. He wished for the millionth time that he and Hyunjin were this close in human form. It would make things so much easier…

Jeongin couldn’t think about being human now. He didn’t want to accidentally shift and terrify Hyunjin. All he needed to think about was what he always thought about when he was in fox form—Hyunjin’s happiness.

So he moved forward, climbed partially into Hyunjin’s lap, and gave Hyunjin a lick on the nose. Hyunjin’s nose wrinkled instinctively at that, but it still got a laugh out of him.

“I missed you,” Hyunjin whispered. “I missed you so much.”

_I missed you more,_ Jeongin wanted to say.

Instead, he moved forward and pressed his forehead into the crook of Hyunjin’s neck. That seemed to break Hyunjin’s restraint. He wrapped his arms around Jeongin and hugged him to his chest tightly. Jeongin couldn’t help exhaling in relief. He had missed Hyunjin’s hugs and warmth too much. He wanted to stay in this moment forever.

But eventually, Hyunjin loosened his grip and pulled back so he could look down at Jeongin. Jeongin made a noise of frustration, wanting Hyunjin to hug him again, and Hyunjin laughed. He lifted a hand to Jeongin’s head and ran it down his soft fur.

“It’s late,” Hyunjin said. “Come on, Baby, it’s time for bed. Do you want to come to bed?”

Hyunjin didn’t even have to ask, honestly. Jeongin smiled and stepped off Hyunjin’s lap to show he was ready to follow him. Hyunjin smiled back before standing and closing the door. Then he patted his leg to signal Jeongin to follow. Jeongin happily trotted after him into the bedroom and onto the bed that he had missed so much.

That night, he fell asleep curled up next to Hyunjin, with Hyunjin’s arm draped over him lightly. For the first time in several months, Jeongin slept peacefully, knowing deep down in his heart that this had been home all along.

*

Unfortunately, Jeongin couldn’t stay at Hyunjin’s forever. Whether he liked it or not, he had another life now. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t visit Hyunjin when he wanted.

He had to go back to the bookstore in the morning, before Woojin and Hyunjin woke up. He couldn’t risk Woojin catching him being out all night. It sucked that Woojin woke up with the sun, which meant Jeongin had to wake up even earlier than that. Maybe he could still catch a quick nap before he had to work today, though.

He wished he could leave a note or something to let Hyunjin know that he wasn’t running away again, that he’d be back tonight, but unfortunately he had to just wait to show Hyunjin that himself. He could only hope that Hyunjin would understand.

*

Hyunjin woke up and immediately rolled over, looking for the red ball of fluff that he swore he had felt last night. His heart sank when he felt nothing but wrinkled sheets. It had really just been a dream, then.

Hyunjin hated those dreams. He had dreamed so often of Baby coming back, of Hyunjin finally being able to hold him close and bury his face into that soft fur again. It always felt so real. But Hyunjin always woke up alone and heartbroken. His day was ruined before it had even started.

Those dreams sucked the motivation out of him. Reminded him of why he hated living in the first place. They always made it so difficult to get up and carry on. He was usually late because of them.

This morning, he closed his eyes for several moments before taking a deep breath and counting to five. On _five_ , he forced himself to stop thinking and to get up. But he only sat up and had to count to five again to fully get out of bed. Then it was all about just putting one foot in front of the other until he reached the bathroom.

He went though his morning routine in a daze. He only snapped out of it when he heard a car horn blare right outside his window, making him jump out of his skin. It sounded so much louder than usual.

A glance at the balcony gave him his answer. The sliding glass door was unlocked and open slightly. Usually this would terrify Hyunjin and make him wonder if he had locked the door last night and if someone had snuck into his house and watched him sleep or stolen something. But he had seen this before.

_Baby?_

Had Baby really been here? Had it not been a dream after all?

Something sparked in Hyunjin’s chest. It put the smallest bit of life back into him, reminding him why he had stayed in this world after all.

Baby came back. He hadn’t meant to leave after all. He really did care for Hyunjin.

That spark in Hyunjin’s chest swelled into a single flame and brought a smile to his face. Yes, Baby had still left, but maybe he would be back tonight. Maybe he came back to tell Hyunjin that even though he had a life of his own now, he would always come back to him in the end.

It was a dangerous thing to hope, but Hyunjin dared to do it anyways. It got him through the day.

*

Woojin didn’t notice a thing. Jeongin couldn’t help grinning to himself, happy that he had gotten away with sneaking out but also guilty about going behind Woojin’s back. It had been worth it, though.

But just because Woojin didn’t notice didn’t mean other people didn’t.

“Aw, there’s the little rebel!” Jisung said that morning as Jeongin got ready to open up shop. Even though they had air conditioning, Jeongin still liked to open up the window and let in the fresh, summer air. It was also nice to chat with Jisung.

“Don’t call me that,” Jeongin said.

“Alright, there’s the little rule-breaker.” Jeongin could practically _hear_ the smile in Jisung’s voice.

“Jisung.”

“Okay, okay. But, uh, Minho mentioned you spent the night at Hyunjin’s, hmm?”

If Jisung were here in human form, he’d be elbowing Jeongin repeatedly in the side with a shit-eating grin on his face.

Jeongin sighed, but he couldn’t help the smile from his face. “Yeah. I shifted back into a fox and went to see him. He said he missed me.”

“Huh, it’s like what I’ve been telling you all along,” Jisung said. “But what’s your plan now? Are you gonna continue to see him in your little fox form every night? Or are you going to tell him the truth in human form?”

Jeongin paused from setting up a book display. “I have to choose?”

“Don’t you want him to know who you are?”

“Well, yeah, but I thought I would tell him once he’s closer to my human form. What if he laughs in my face and calls me a freak and that he never wants to see me again?” Jeongin’s eyes were already brimming with tears. “I can’t take that…”

“Do you honestly think Hwang Hyunjin has it in him to tell anyone that they’re a freak? He’s not that kind of person, Jeongin. He’s, like, ridiculously sweet and polite to the point where it’s kind of annoying.”

Jeongin shook his head. “I can’t tell him now. It’s too soon. I have to wait.”

“For how long?”

“Until it’s the right time.”

“And how will you know when it’s the right time?”

“I’ll just know,” Jeongin said.

And that was the end of that conversation.

*

Jeongin had to wait until Woojin was asleep that night (which, admittedly, wasn’t _that_ late) before he could slip out and make his way back to Hyunjin’s apartment. He was worried about how Hyunjin would react tonight. Would he be mad at Jeongin for leaving again during the day? Would he reject him, thinking it would be less painful in the long run? Just the thought of Hyunjin leaving Jeongin out on the balcony made Jeongin sick to his stomach.

He was a shaking, nervous mess by the time he got to the balcony. But the moment he climbed up onto it and saw what was waiting for him, relief came crashing down.

Hyunjin was sitting on a chair out on the balcony. And when he saw Jeongin peek over the edge, a huge grin spread across his face.

“So I really _wasn’t_ dreaming last night,” Hyunjin said. “You really did come back! And then left again but that’s okay. You’re here again.”

Jeongin let out a happy yip and immediately scrambled up onto the balcony. He hopped effortlessly into Hyunjin’s lap and put his head on Hyunjin’s shoulder. Hyunjin didn’t waste a second in hugging Jeongin tightly.

“Where do you go during the day, huh?” Hyunjin asked. “Why don’t you just stay here? Or do you just like being able to come and go as you please?”

Jeongin just snuggled closer, and Hyunjin sighed.

“Sometimes I wish you could talk,” he said. “Then you’d be able to tell me all about where you’ve been and what you’ve been up to.” He snorted, a content smile making its way onto his face. “I wonder what stories all animals could tell if they could talk.”

Jeongin had a feeling that most animals would not be interesting whatsoever. But he let Hyunjin dream anyways.

“I guess you kinda talk to me in your own way,” Hyunjin continued. “And I’d still like to think that you understand me.” He gasped suddenly, startling Jeongin. Jeongin looked up at him as Hyunjin’s eyes widened. “Wait, I have an idea! If you can understand me, maybe we can figure out a way to communicate?”

Jeongin made a doubtful expression.

“See?” Hyunjin pointed at him. “You’re obviously talking to me right now. Bark once if you can understand me.”

Jeongin wasn’t entirely sure if this was a good idea, but he had always wanted a way to talk to Hyunjin more effectively…so he let out a tiny bark.

Hyunjin’s eyes somehow managed to widen even further. He looked so silly. Like his eyes were going to fall out of his head. “You really can understand me, then.”

Reluctantly, Jeongin gave another bark.

“Holy shit.” Hyunjin still looked shocked, but a smile was starting to appear on his face. “Holy shit, okay. We can make this work. Come on.” He scooped Jeongin up and carried him into the apartment. Jeongin couldn’t help making a startled noise.

Hyunjin set him down on the bed and then sat criss-cross in front of him. Jeongin still wasn’t entirely sure if this was a good idea. What if Hyunjin figured out the truth? Now was definitely not the time to tell him that. Jeongin wasn’t ready to lose him just yet. Maybe he could just play dumb. He supposed he could always refuse to answer some questions…

Jeongin blinked up at Hyunjin, who was staring at him with his mouth hanging open. He looked like he was trying to peer right into Jeongin’s head. It made Jeongin uncomfortable, so he let out a tiny whimper.

That seemed to snap Hyunjin out of it.

“Right,” Hyunjin said, clearing his throat. “Okay. Uh, how about this? One bark means yes, two marks mean no. Pretty simple, right?”

Jeongin barked once. Hyunjin grinned.

“We can make this work,” Hyunjin said, only to sigh and mutter to himself, “I am really spending my nights trying to get my fox to talk. I think I might be the craziest person I know.”

Jeongin barked once at that, making Hyunjin look at him in surprise. Jeongin smiled at him.

“You have a sense of humor too.” Hyunjin snorted and ruffled the top of Jeongin’s head, making Jeongin groan in annoyance. Hyunjin laughed but said, “Okay, okay. First question—did you mean to leave?”

Wow, he was not going to waste any time, was he? Jeongin lowered his head and let out a single yip. Hyunjin’s shoulders slumped.

“Oh,” he said. “Did you leave because you hated me?”

Jeongin quickly shook his head. Hyunjin’s brow furrowed, reminding Jeongin that he needed to bark twice for _no_.

“Then why…why did you leave?” Hyunjin’s voice was barely above a whisper, indicating that he was talking to himself more than anything.

Jeongin still wanted to answer, though, so he stepped forward and looked pointedly at Hyunjin’s right hand. Hyunjin frowned and looked down at his hand—at his scar. Jeongin looked up at him, his eyes sad.

“Because of this?” Hyunjin frowned, only for his eyes to widen a moment later. “Wait, did you leave to punish yourself?”

Jeongin barked once, though it was soft. He stared down at the sheets.

“Oh, no, Baby.” Hyunjin took Jeongin’s face in his hands and pressed their foreheads together. “I’ll admit, I was hurt, but I wasn’t mad. I didn’t blame you or hate you. It was my fault—I should have given you space.” He took a deep breath and sat back. Jeongin looked up at him with wide eyes, making Hyunjin snort. He took one of Jeongin’s ears lightly in between his fingers and rubbed at the softness.

“You were acting so distant,” Hyunjin said softly. “And you were acting out. I didn’t know what was wrong with you. And then when I needed you the most, you just…ignored me.”

Jeongin whimpered and put a paw on Hyunjin’s other hand.

Hyunjin stared at the paw for a few moments before letting out a short laugh. “But you’re here for me now, is that what you’re saying?”

Jeongin barked once. This time, it was loud. Full of conviction.

Hyunjin smiled. “But only at night, right?”

Jeongin’s bark was decidedly _less_ loud this time.

“That’s fine,” Hyunjin said. “Where do you go during the day, though? Did you…did you find another home?”

Jeongin barked once, his head lowered.

“Oh,” Hyunjin said. “Do you like it?”

Jeongin wished he could shrug as a fox. He didn’t answer and instead looked away.

“You could always stay here,” Hyunjin said hopefully.

Jeongin didn’t reply, and Hyunjin’s shoulders slumped again.

“Alright,” he said. He sniffed, but then forced a smile. “That’s okay. You’re free now, is that it? You like it much better being able to do whatever you want, whenever you want. And that’s fine.”

Jeongin’s expression was pained, but he wasn’t sure if that was conveyed effectively in this form.

“I think that’s enough talking for one night,” Hyunjin said with a sigh. “Let’s just…let’s just sleep, yeah? Yeah, let’s go to bed, Baby. Maybe we’ll watch something before we fall asleep. I don’t know.” He shook his head, stood up, and walked away, leaving Jeongin sitting there on the bed, staring after him with sad eyes.

Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all.

He waited as Hyunjin got ready for bed and walked back into the room. Hyunjin smiled when he saw Jeongin curled up on the bed, watching the door like a hawk.

“Keeping watch, huh?” Hyunjin patted Jeongin’s head on his way to his side of the bed. He got into bed and turned off the lights before bringing up a video on his phone. Jeongin immediately went over to him and curled up at his side. He even put his head on Hyunjin’s chest. Hyunjin absent-mindedly ran a hand down Jeongin’s spine as he watched whatever drama he had pulled up on his phone.

Jeongin started to doze off at the sound of Hyunjin’s heart and the quiet murmur of the video. Right before he slipped off, though, Hyunjin whispered, “I still miss you.”

*

Hyunjin, admittedly, did not have very good impulse control. So whenever he came up with an idea or a plan of some sort, he rarely could stop himself from acting upon it.

Which was why he got up way earlier than usual just to trick a pet fox of all things.

He knew Baby snuck away right before dawn, right before Hyunjin woke up. But Hyunjin wanted to see exactly where Baby snuck off to every morning. He wanted to see what Baby’s new home and family were like.

Maybe he was jealous. Maybe he was hurt. Wait, no—not maybe. He was definitely jealous and hurt. Why couldn’t Baby stay with him forever? Was this new family really so much better? Hyunjin just had to see it for himself.

So, that following morning, he carefully slipped out of bed, grabbed his phone, and tiptoed out of the room. Baby stirred slightly and lifted his head to blink blearily at Hyunjin.

_Why are you getting up so early?_ he seemed to ask.

“Just going to the bathroom,” Hyunjin whispered. That seemed to convince the fox. Baby settled back down and closed his eyes.

Hyunjin slipped into the bathroom. He turned on the light and even turned on the sink a few times. But after a few minutes, he slipped out again, careful to keep the light on to make it look like he was still in there. Then he grabbed his shoes and slipped out the front door.

He practically tripped over himself to get downstairs quickly. His body wasn’t used to being awake this early. It got in his way.

Somehow, though, he managed to run out the front and around the back, to the fire escape. There, he crouched in the shadows of a dumpster, ignoring the awful smell as he watched the fire escape for any movement. In a way, he was kind of grateful for the smell. It kept him from dozing off as he waited for his pet fox to run away.

Hyunjin had to shake his head at himself. What in the _world_ was he doing? First getting heartbroken over a pet fox of all things, then trying to get it to talk, then stalking it to find out where it went? He had sunk so low.

But he hated his life anyways so why not do something crazy to shaken things up once in awhile.

The sky was just lightening when a familiar flash of red came down the fire escape. Hyunjin held his breath, watching as Baby climbed down and quickly trotted away from the fire escape. He didn’t seem to notice Hyunjin watching him.

Actually, Baby never noticed Hyunjin following him at all. Hyunjin followed him closely, weaving through side streets and alleyways at a clipped pace. Baby never once looked back or seemed to detect his scent in the air. He must have been too determined to get to his destination.

Hyunjin was vaguely aware that they were drawing closer and closer to the river. Baby picked up his pace as the sun just barely started to peek over the horizon, now breaking into a full-on run that made it difficult to keep up. Hyunjin almost lost him a few times, but somehow he managed to keep up as he rounded a corner too quickly and nearly slipped. He skidded to a halt and looked up, noticing that Baby had reached his destination. He was pushing open a side door in an alleyway and slipping inside.

Hyunjin straightened up, frowning at the familiar building in front of him.

Lost Stars Bookstore.

*

That had cut it too close. Jeongin slipped into the apartment, darted into his room, and dove under the covers, just seconds before he heard Woojin moving around in his own room. His heart was practically beating out of his chest. He was panting still. And yet somehow he still managed to get away with it. He breathed a huge sigh of relief, then passed out. Shifting still took so much energy.

The rest of the day was a dull one. That is, right up until closing, when the bell over the door rang one last time.

Jeongin looked up and couldn’t help smiling. “Hi, Hyunjin,” he said, his chest warming considerably. Just the mere sight of him sent happy tingles all throughout his body, which only intensified when Hyunjin smiled back at him.

“Hi, Jeongin,” Hyunjin said, leaning against the counter. “Sorry I haven’t been in lately. I’ve been busy.”

“That’s okay, you’re here now,” Jeongin said. “And you’re here before closing so I don’t have to kick you out!”

Hyunjin grinned at that. “How are you doing? You look happier.”

“So do you,” Jeongin said.

“Not as lonely?”

Jeongin shrugged. “Not too bad. I got to see someone I care a lot about again this past week.”

“Yeah?” Hyunjin raised his eyebrows at that. “That’s so good to hear, Jeongin. I’m happy for you.”

Jeongin smiled again. “Yeah, I get to see him every day.” He couldn’t help sighing dreamily. “He’s my favorite person in the world. Just seeing him for a little bit every day makes me think that life here isn’t so bad after all. Makes me think that there’s hope that things will be okay in the end.”

Hyunjin’s eyes grew distant as he nodded. “Yeah, I understand that. I’m glad you have someone who makes life worth living.”

“What about you?” Jeongin tilted his head to one side. “What made you so happy?”

“Oh, I, uh, went to a pet store and played with some of the animals there,” Hyunjin said. He shrugged and glanced down at the counter, absent-mindedly fiddling with some bookmarks on display. “I love animals so much. I don’t have any special someone like you, but I did use to have a pet. Having a pet is something else entirely. A different kind of love. It’s unconditional. They love you regardless of anything and stay by your side through thick and thin.” He glanced up at Jeongin, his eyes carrying a bit of sadness in them. “I’ve thought that maybe I’ll be okay if I never find someone as long as I have a dog. They’re called ‘Man’s Best Friend’ for a reason, you know?”

Jeongin nodded slowly, not entirely sure what he was getting at.

“Have you ever had any pets?” Hyunjin asked.

Jeongin shook his head. “No. Never really had time for one. Woojin doesn’t allow pets in the apartment, anyways.”

A flicker of confusion crossed Hyunjin’s face before he covered it up with a smile. “If you could have any pet in the world, what would it be?”

“Any animal?”

“Any animal at all.”

Jeongin thought for a few moments. “I think I’d want a cat. Or maybe just a fish.”

Hyunjin snorted at that. “A fish?”

“Or a hamster,” Jeongin said. “Something easy to take care of.”

“Hamsters and fishes don’t live very long, though,” Hyunjin said. “Cats live forever, though. I’d want a cat too if I wasn’t allergic. I like dogs better anyways.”

Jeongin smiled at that.

“I think I’d want a fox,” Hyunjin said. “A pet fox.” He tilted his head to one side as he looked at Jeongin curiously. “What do you think about having a pet fox?”

Jeongin shrugged, even though his heart was pounding and his palms were beginning to sweat. “I don’t know. I’ve heard they’re not as easy to take care of as you think. They’re essentially wild animals, you know…” He trailed off and glanced down at his hands.

“I used to have a pet fox,” Hyunjin said softly, making Jeongin look up at him. Hyunjin’s face was so sad and so full of longing that it tugged at Jeongin’s heart. “I raised him from a kit. He got into my camping gear and I didn’t notice until I came all the way home.” He snorted, a fond smile making its way onto his face. “He was so, so tiny. And so skinny. He couldn’t go back to the wild, so I adopted him. Did all kinds of research. Thought I knew what I was getting into. But he…he was so different. So…loving, I guess. I found him when I was going through a really tough time, and he helped me get through it. Just by loving me unconditionally, like you’d expect from dogs or something.” He swallowed thickly and looked down at the bookmarks again. “I thought he was going to stay forever. But he was still wild at heart and ran away. Right when I needed him the most.” He sighed and rubbed at his eyes, while Jeongin was struggling not to break down right there.

Hyunjin sniffed and looked up at Jeongin, a small smile on his face. “I guess I just want my fox back more than anything.”

“You never know,” Jeongin whispered. “He could come back.”

“Yeah, there’s a chance I’ll see him again,” Hyunjin said. “But I’ll never be able to make him stay, you know? He’s too wild for that.”

“Maybe…” Jeongin swallowed, trying to word this correctly. “Maybe he has some things to work through right now. Maybe he wants to come back more than anything but has to wait for the right timing.”

Hyunjin snorted. “If we were talking about anything else, I’d call you crazy for thinking that a fox has all of that to work through. But my fox…he really was different. It almost felt like there was a person in there, trying to communicate with me.” He frowned to himself and looked up at Jeongin. He had that look again, that look like he was trying to see into Jeongin’s mind. It still made Jeongin uncomfortable.

Jeongin realized he needed to say something to break this awkward silence and get Hyunjin to stop staring at him, but Hyunjin beat him to it.

“Is your hair naturally that red?” Hyunjin blurted.

Jeongin couldn’t help it and let out a little laugh. “Uh, yes?” He put a hand to his hair, unable to stop himself from grinning. “That came out of nowhere.”

“Sorry,” Hyunjin said, smiling. The serious mood from before disappeared, easing the tension in the room. “I forget people can’t follow my train of thought sometimes. I was just thinking about my fox and how red his fur is. It’s practically the same color as your hair.”

“Oh,” Jeongin said. “Uh. Weird.”

“Yeah,” Hyunjin said. “Really weird.”

And now he was back to doing that _thing._ That _staring-intensely-into-Jeongin’s-soul_ thing. Jeongin wished he would _stop that_.

“Um.” Jeongin cleared his throat, causing Hyunjin to snap out of it. “I’m really sorry, Hyunjinnie, but I have to close up soon…”

“Oh.” Hyunjin straightened up. “Right. Right. I’ll, uh, get going. Sorry about dropping all of that emotional stuff on you out of the blue. I went for a walk this morning and thought I saw a fox run down the street here.”

Jeongin’s insides went cold. “You…you did?”

“Yeah, reminded me of my fox.” Hyunjin gave a small smile. “Made me miss him more than anything.”

“I hope you find him soon,” Jeongin said.

“Yeah.” Hyunjin did that staring thing for a few seconds more before adding, “Something tells me I already have.”

Before Jeongin could even process what _that_ meant, Hyunjin smiled brightly and said, “See you later, Innie.” Then he turned and walked out of the shop.

*

They had the same eyes.

The same color hair.

The same smile.

Maybe Hyunjin really was losing his mind, trying to see things that weren’t really there. Maybe it was his subconscious telling him he needed to find some other way to cope. But it nagged at him. Constantly. Whenever Baby came around late at night, the thoughts resurfaced. Whenever Hyunjin went to the bookstore to keep Jeongin company, the thoughts were there, swirling around, driving him insane.

At one point, he took pictures just to compare them. He chose a picture of Baby from his camera roll (one of thousands, since Hyunjin used to take pictures of every single thing Baby did. Which was basically everything). Then he smoothly asked Jeongin to take a selfie with him one day, since they were friends, now. When he went home that night, in the few hours before Baby appeared, he compared them.

It was freaky. Ridiculously freaky. So freaky that Hyunjin went knocking on Seungmin’s door that very night.

“Look at this and tell me I’m not going crazy,” Hyunjin said, shoving his phone in Seungmin’s face the moment Seungmin opened the door.

“What am I supposed to be looking at?” Seungmin asked, taking the phone from Hyunjin’s hand so he could see it clearly.

“Just…look.” Hyunjin watched his expressions closely, his heart practically pounding out of his chest.

Seungmin was silent for a few moments before frowning a bit. “They look similar?” He looked up at Hyunjin, confused. “Your new friend or boyfriend or whatever looks a lot like a fox?”

“Not just any fox.” Hyunjin pointed at the picture of Baby. “He looks like _that_ fox.”

“So you have a type?” Seungmin arched an eyebrow.

“What? _No_. God, Seungmin, did you just imply that I’m a goddamn _furry_?”

Seungmin just shrugged. “You’re ridiculously obsessed with your pet fox.”

“That means I love animals, not that I want to—you know what, never mind.” Hyunjin quickly waved the thought away and grabbed his phone from Seungmin’s hand. “I just…Baby came back.”

Seungmin raised his eyebrows in surprise.

A few minutes later, they were curled up on Seungmin’s couch, with steaming mugs of tea in their hands. Seungmin had also piled blankets and pillows on Hyunjin’s lap, just to give Hyunjin something to hug as he talked.

“Okay,” Seungmin said. “When did this happen?”

“About a week ago,” Hyunjin said. “He only comes at night. And then he leaves early the following morning. He goes to his new home and family. Or, I _thought_ he went to his new home and family. I got curious and followed him one day.”

“You followed your pet fox around?” Seungmin arched an eyebrow.

“Yes—don’t judge me.”

“Totally judging.” Seungmin sipped at his tea.

“Wait till you hear where he went,” Hyunjin said.

“I’m on the edge of my seat.”

“He went to the Lost Stars Bookstore.”

That got Seungmin to frown. “I never saw him in the store.”

“I’ve never seen him in there either,” Hyunjin said. “I went there the next day to talk to Jeongin about it, just to see if he really was Baby’s new owner or whatever, but he said he didn’t have any pets at all. And that’s when I started noticing some things.”

“You started thinking that Jeongin is some human version of your pet fox,” Seungmin deadpanned.

“Yes!” Hyunjin pointed at him and knocked a pillow to the floor in the process. “They look so similar, Seungmin. And I always told you that Baby doesn’t seem like a normal fox—or even a normal animal, for that matter. He seriously acts like a person some times. He even understands me _and_ knows how to answer yes or no questions. And he didn’t reappear again until _after_ I met Jeongin. Plus, doesn’t this explain how Jeongin was so comfortable around me when I first met him? Almost like he had met me before?”

“Okay. Okay.” Seungmin set his mug on the coffee table and rubbed at his temples. “Say you’re right. Say Jeongin really is Baby and that he can shape-shift or something. How the hell is that even possible?”

“I don’t know,” Hyunjin said. “And I don’t know how to explain it other than this gut feeling. It’s _true_ , Seungmin. It has to be true.”

“So then that means that this kid has watched you eat and sleep and shower and do all kinds of things and knows all about you from the eyes of an unsuspecting pet,” Seungmin said. “That’s creepy as _fuck_ , Jinnie.”

“Well, when you put it that way, it _does_ sound creepy.” Hyunjin sighed. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m just so desperate right now.”

“I’d say this is definitely a new low for you,” Seungmin said. “Maybe you should get another pet. A dog or something. Not another fox. I think this combined with Chan leaving is—”

“Don’t.” Hyunjin closed his eyes tightly. “Don’t talk about Chan.”

Seungmin sighed. “Hyunjin, you’re still not over him, clearly. I think he hurt you more than you want to admit and then Baby attacking you was so traumatizing that you’re creating this entirely different person in your head to cope.”

“He didn’t mean to attack me, though,” Hyunjin insisted. “I asked him and he said no! He even looked so guilty and sorry about it.”

Seungmin just gave him a concerned look. “Hyunjin.”

“I’m not crazy,” Hyunjin said. “I’m not creating this entirely different universe just to cope. People go through breakups all the time. People lose their pets all the time. None of them went insane over it!”

“Well, that’s debatable,” Seungmin admitted. “But you’re not most people, Hyunjin. I think you’ve been struggling for awhile. You’re not in a good place mentally. You’re sick, you need help. And I say that out of nothing but love and concern for you.”

Hyunjin shook his head, whispering, “I’m not crazy, Seungmin. I’m not.”

“I’m not saying you’re crazy. I’m saying you need to start taking steps to help yourself heal. To get back into a healthy mindset. I’m worried about you.”

Hyunjin just shook his head again, wanting to scream. But in the back of his mind, he knew that Seungmin had a point. He was sick. He wasn’t in the right mind. He really did need help.

That didn’t stop him from wanting to prove his point, though. He was onto something, he knew he was. If he turned out to be wrong, he would get help.

Until then, though, he was determined to figure out a way to prove that Jeongin and Baby were somehow connected.

*

That night, nothing seemed out of the ordinary when Jeongin shifted into fox form and went to Hyunjin’s. Sure, Hyunjin seemed to trail off and stare at him whenever Jeongin wasn’t looking, but that was normal. Jeongin was used to it by now. He had even stopped getting uncomfortable whenever Hyunjin stared at him in fox form, mostly because he knew that Hyunjin was just gazing at him appreciatively. Hyunjin just liked to stare at things he loved.

He didn’t like how Hyunjin stared at him whenever he was in human form, but that was a different story.

Tonight, Jeongin was tired from a long day at work. Woojin had recently started to trust him to work some busier times at the store with Felix. It was another step in the right direction, but simply interacting with people exhausted him. Tonight, he just wanted to curl up next to Hyunjin or on his lap or even nestled into the crook of his neck. He just wanted to feel Hyunjin’s warmth, to listen to his breathing and heartbeat, to bask in the comfort Hyunjin brought.

Hyunjin, as always, was in a cuddly mood, so he curled up with Jeongin on the bed as he watched something on his phone. Jeongin exhaled softly, perfectly content from where he had his face snuggled into Hyunjin’s neck. Hyunjin squirmed and giggled at the feeling but patted Jeongin’s fur anyways.

“Someone’s sleepy,” Hyunjin said.

Jeongin just groaned in response.

“That’s okay, you can sleep,” Hyunjin said. “I’ll watch over you.”

Jeongin let out a content sigh before letting his eyes slide shut. He could get used to living like this forever.

As he drifted off, though, he heard Hyunjin whisper something. Jeongin was already too out of it to hear properly, but he couldn’t help thinking that he heard Hyunjin say his name.

_Jeongin?_

He blamed it on his dreams.

*

Jeongin woke up feeling…strange. He couldn’t put his finger on the reason right away. He was still half-asleep as he peered at the time on the clock on Hyunjin’s nightstand, reading just past six in the morning. It didn’t really register in his mind, so he thought he still had a couple minutes to doze before he had to get up and leave.

As he put his head back down on the pillow, though, he noticed how close he was to Hyunjin. Practically pressed up against his back. Usually that wouldn’t bother him. No, he was more bothered by the fact that his entire body fit so nicely against Hyunjin’s.

Jeongin’s eyes flew open. He pushed himself up, immediately taking in the long, gangly limbs and the clothes and the hands—he had _hands,_ not paws. Why was it always hands that sent him into an existential crisis?

Somehow he had shifted in the middle of the night from fox form to human form. He had no idea how it hadn’t woken him or Hyunjin up.

Oh, no, no— _Hyunjin._ Hyunjin couldn’t see him like this. He’d take one look at Jeongin and scream and probably call the police or something. He’d panic and wonder why Jeongin was in his apartment and immediately start to think of Jeongin as some creep or a freak. And then he’d hate him.

Jeongin almost made a strangled, panicked sound, but managed to clamp a hand over his mouth and silence it at the last moment. He stared down at Hyunjin with wide eyes, wondering how he was going to get out of here without waking Hyunjin up. Could he make it to the sliding glass door without making a sound? What if Hyunjin woke up anyways? Jeongin would need to hide somewhere.

He supposed he could always try to shift back, too. But he could already feel that he didn’t have enough energy to do that. He was stuck in human form for the time being.

He glanced at the clock again, his heart beginning to pound in his chest. He felt sick. He was going to throw up out of fear if he didn’t act soon.

It was half-past six. The sun was already up. Jeongin had not only shifted, but he had also overslept. Woojin would be up by now. He would notice immediately that Jeongin wasn’t home. Would he be worried or angry? Or both?

Jeongin shook his head. One thing at a time. Right now, he needed to get out of here before Hyunjin woke up.

Carefully, he shifted his weight on the bed, freezing at any slight movement that jostled Hyunjin a bit too much. Hyunjin shifted in his sleep, mumbling something under his breath. Jeongin waited until he settled down again before getting off the bed entirely. He didn’t even realize he was holding his breath the entire time until he was standing next to the bed and let out a sigh of relief.

He started for the door, right as a shrill sound split through the air. Jeongin nearly jumped out of his skin as Hyunjin’s alarm went off. Hyunjin groaned and slammed his hand on the snooze button right as Jeongin dropped to the floor. He rolled under the bed and held his breath, listening for any kind of movement from above.

It took a couple more hits of the snooze button before Hyunjin finally got up. Jeongin flinched as Hyunjin’s feet hit the floor right next to the bed—right next to Jeongin’s face. They dragged towards the bedroom door, to the bathroom. Hyunjin wasn’t awake enough to notice that his pet fox was gone. Maybe he was already used to Jeongin leaving so early.

Jeongin listened to the bathroom door shut before rolling out from under the bed. He made another move to get up and head to the bedroom door. At that moment, the bathroom door opened again, causing Jeongin to dart under the bed again. He clamped a hand over his mouth to silence his breathing as he watched Hyunjin’s bare feet go to the closet, then back to the door. He left the bathroom door open, though, and walked back and forth between there and the closet a couple more times, dropping shirts and sweatshirts and jackets on the floor with every trip.

Jeongin couldn’t help frowning. Why was Hyunjin taking so long to get ready? He usually just threw on the first sweatshirt he found and called it good. Why was he putting actual _effort_ into his outfit today?

Some part of Jeongin was curious as to the reason, but the greater part of Jeongin was just annoyed that Hyunjin couldn’t make up his mind and was taking forever to get out of the apartment because of it.

_Just hurry up and leave already!_ Jeongin wanted to scream.

It felt like ages, but finally Hyunjin finished getting ready, complete with cologne and everything. The last time Hyunjin used cologne, he was going out with Chan. That wasn’t a fond memory in the slightest.

Jeongin’s nose twitched. _Oh no._

He had always liked the smell of Hyunjin’s cologne, but for some reason it was affecting his nose right now. That, combined with the amount of dust under the bed—seriously, when was the last time Hyunjin cleaned under here? His eyes were beginning to water as his stupid human body geared up for a sneeze. He shifted to put both hands over his mouth and nose, desperately trying to hold in the sneeze as he heard Hyunjin moving around closer to the front door.

_Leave, leave, leave—_

The front door finally slammed, and Jeongin sneezed so hard that he accidentally hit his head on the bottom of the bed. Both sounds were loud and surely would have ended disastrously if Hyunjin had still been here.

Jeongin crawled out from under the bed, suddenly exhausted. His heart was still pounding, but the adrenaline was fading from his system. He would have to hurry back to his apartment before he passed out on his feet.

He finally stood, still rubbing at his nose from the dust and cologne. His steps were sluggish, but eventually he left the bedroom and headed for the sliding glass door. As he passed the kitchen, he absent-mindedly glanced at the counter, where Hyunjin had left his phone.

Jeongin stopped in his tracks, the adrenaline pulsing through him once again. Hyunjin never went anywhere without his phone. So that meant—

The door to the apartment opened, causing Jeongin to whirl around. In the moment his eyes locked with Hyunjin’s, he felt something inside him shatter, replaced by a kind of pure terror that rendered him nearly immobile.

Hyunjin stopped, his eyes going wide, his mouth falling open. He stared at Jeongin for a few moments before he blinked and started to say, “Jeong—”

“This isn’t what it looks like!” Jeongin exclaimed, holding his hands out in front of him. “This isn’t—I’m not—this looks bad, but—” he couldn’t get the words out. The longer he stayed here, the harder his heart pounded and the more panic surged up in him. He could feel something stirring up in his chest, something that felt all too much like the spark and energy right before he shifted.

_No, no,_ he couldn’t shift right now—

Hyunjin’s face wasn’t enraged or scared or disgusted like Jeongin thought it would be. Instead, he looked calm—too calm—and he was gesturing to get Jeongin to calm down too. How could he be so calm in this situation? How could he not instantly hate Jeongin for being in his apartment?

“Jeongin, it’s okay—” he started to say when Jeongin’s panic spiked. The energy in his chest pulsed, and suddenly there was a flash of light, as there always was whenever Jeongin’s shifted. The next thing he knew, he was staring up at Hyunjin from the floor, while Hyunjin was lowering his arms from shielding his eyes against the light. He stared down at Jeongin, his expression finally morphing into that of horror.

Jeongin couldn’t take this. Instinct took over, and he bolted. He shot in between Hyunjin’s legs and through the front door, which Hyunjin had left open.

Hyunjin shouted after him, calling Jeongin’s name and for him to stop, but Jeongin didn’t listen. He slammed right into the door to the stairwell, wincing from the impact but managing to open it regardless, before bolting down the stairs. He kept running, running, running until he was out of the building and out onto the street. Once there, he didn’t slow down in the slightest. Just kept moving, kept running away.

Why was he always running away from Hyunjin?

At some point, his aching, shattered heart broke through his fox form again and forced tears into his eyes. The tears blurred his vision as he ran, sometimes disorienting him. He bumped into corners of buildings, dumpsters, light posts, and other things. But even as it knocked him off course momentarily and sent pain pulsing through his tiny body, he kept going.

Finally, the bookstore came into view. Jeongin’s adrenaline was almost completely out. He almost collapsed in the alleyway. But he managed to force himself to go just a few feet more, until he was through the first door and starting up the stairs. There, he didn’t have enough energy to shift. He just pawed at the door before collapsing in front of it.

The last thing he remembered as he slipped into unconsciousness was the door opening and the comforting sensation of being lifted into a pair of strong, familiar arms.

*

When Jeongin came to, he was back in human form. He was laying in his bed. The window was open. There was a faint breeze drifting through. His entire body ached, but not as much as his heart did.

“You’re awake.”

With great difficulty, Jeongin turned his head to the side, where Woojin sat in a chair pulled up next to Jeongin’s bed. He didn’t look happy.

“Woojin,” Jeongin started weakly.

Woojin didn’t let him finish. He held up a hand and said, “Is this going to be a regular occurrence? You running to Hyunjin, only to make a mistake and come running back to me?”

Jeongin stared at him for a few moments before shaking his head. “It won’t happen again.”

“You’ve said that before,” Woojin said.

“No, I’m sure of it this time.” Jeongin’s eyes filled with tears, and he looked away. “He found out the truth.”

There was a beat of silence before Woojin said, “How?”

“I accidentally shifted in front of him. That’s why I ran away. I panicked.”

When Woojin just stayed silent, Jeongin couldn’t help blurting, “I’m so sorry, Woojin. I went behind your back and broke all your rules and just went and got my heart broken again. Just like what you said would happen.”

“I’m not mad,” Woojin said. He sounded more exhausted than anything. “I was just worried. You didn’t come back last night. And when you still didn’t show up this morning, I made Minho and Jisung tell me what was going on. I was mad for a little bit, but not anymore.”

“I’m sorry,” Jeongin said again. His voice sounded so small and weak. So broken. He hated it. But it seemed like he always sounded like that. “I’m so sorry.”

“Shh, it’s okay.” Woojin moved forward and smoothed back Jeongin’s hair from his forehead. “You made your mistake. Hopefully you’ll learn from it. There’s no point in being mad about it anymore.”

“I was so stupid,” Jeongin said. “I should have known this wouldn’t end well. But I chose to believe that it would. It was just easier to hope, you know? But in the end, I set myself up for disappointment and heartbreak.”

Woojin didn’t reply to that. Probably because it was true, and he saw no point in trying to argue otherwise. So, instead, he said, “You should rest. You’ve had a rough morning.”

“What about the store?”

Woojin snorted. “Felix and I handled it long before you showed up. Don’t worry about it. Just focus on resting and recovering.”

Jeongin nodded.

Woojin smiled at him before withdrawing and standing. He left the room.

Jeongin lay there for several moments, thinking he was in too much pain to sleep properly. He rolled his head to the side, towards the window. The breeze seemed to caress his face and dry the tears that had slipped down his cheeks without him knowing. As he watched, though, a beam of sunlight lifted to his face, filling him with warmth. Jeongin couldn’t help smiling a bit.

“Hi, Jisung,” he said.

“I’m here for you, you know that, right?” Jisung said. “And I didn’t mean to tell Woojin, it’s just that he scares the living daylights out of me when he gets angry and—”

“I’m not mad,” Jeongin said. “And I don’t blame you.”

Jisung exhaled in relief, the beam of light brightening just a bit. “I’ll watch over you,” he said.

Jeongin wished he hadn’t said that. It reminded him all too much of what Hyunjin had said the night before.

But he still told Jisung hoarsely, “Okay.”

Then he slipped back into unconsciousness.

*

Hyunjin went sprinting after Jeongin, shouting at him to stop, to calm down, to come _back_. Hyunjin wasn’t mad, he wasn’t disgusted, he wasn’t horrified. Well…he was kind of horrified. Just from seeing the transformation in person. That was a little trippy. But other than that, Hyunjin wasn’t mad or disgusted or horrified at all! If anything, he was _happy_. He was so happy that he was right and that he wasn’t crazy after all.

And yet, Jeongin didn’t let him say any of this. Instead, Jeongin had panicked and had run away. Now, Hyunjin chased after him, knowing exactly where he was going. Apparently Jeongin was even faster when he had adrenaline pumping through him while he was also in the form of a fox, and Hyunjin couldn’t keep up. He lost him. Not to mention how he ran out of breath quickly and had to slow to a stop. But he didn’t worry. He knew he would catch up with Jeongin eventually.

Once he had gotten his breath back, and once the bookstore came into view, he didn’t waste any time running through the door, nearly scaring the crap out of Felix behind the counter.

“Hyunjin!” he exclaimed, breathing a sigh of relief as he pressed a hand to his chest. “You scared me half to death. We’re also not open yet, so I’ll have to ask you to—”

“Where’s Jeongin?” Hyunjin interrupted.

Felix frowned. “Jeongin?”

“Yes—where’s Jeongin, Felix?”

“He’s, uh, upstairs?” Felix pointed upwards.

Hyunjin didn’t even wait around long enough to say thank you. He left as quickly as he came, going through the side door into the small foyer where the staircase was. He ran up it and knocked loudly on the door. When no one responded right away, he knocked again and said, “Jeongin? Jeongin, I know you’re in there. Can you please just—”

The door opened, startling Hyunjin. He blinked in surprise at the man standing in the doorway, who was a few inches shorter than Hyunjin but still managed to make Hyunjin feel small. There was something about his _presence_ that made Hyunjin want to cower. It might also have to do with the fact that the man also had very built arms that could probably snap Hyunjin’s neck in half like a toothpick.

“Hi,” Hyunjin forced himself to say. “Uh…you must be Woojin?”

“And you must be Hyunjin,” the man—Woojin—said. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m looking for Jeongin—is he here? Can I talk to him, please?”

“He doesn’t want to see you right now.” Woojin was already starting to close the door.

“I know he’s probably freaking out right now but I really need to talk to him.” Hyunjin, for some reason, decided it would be a good idea to put an arm out to keep the door from slamming in his face. As if he could overpower Woojin of all people. “Please, just let me talk to him.”

Woojin pretended to think for a moment, then said, “No.” And promptly slammed the door in Hyunjin’s face.

Hyunjin was so shocked that he just stared at the closed door for a few moments. Then he knocked again. And again. And again. But the door stayed shut, and Hyunjin felt like screaming.

He tried to reason with himself. Not talking to Jeongin right away would give both of them time to calm down a bit. He could still try talking to him later today. Or tomorrow, even. This wasn’t the end to everything.

So, with great difficulty, he walked away.

He didn’t end up going back that day. But he did go back the next day. Woojin answered the door again.

“The answer is still no,” Woojin said.

“Please,” is all Hyunjin said.

“No.” And Woojin shut the door in his face again.

Hyunjin tried again the following day. Woojin didn’t even answer the door.

He went a fourth time, but this time, he didn’t go in the morning. He went after work, after a particularly bad day. He was so exhausted. He just wanted to see Jeongin again. He couldn’t let this destroy things after they had finally started to turn around. He wasn’t entirely sure he was strong enough to handle losing both Jeongin and Baby a second time around.

This time, he knocked softly, his eyes lowered. He didn’t really expect an answer. But it was worth a try.

The door opened, and Hyunjin looked up to see a wide-eyed Jeongin standing there, staring at him like he had dropped out of the sky.

“Jeongin,” Hyunjin said in relief. “I—”

Jeongin shut the door faster than Woojin had. Hyunjin didn’t even try to stop him, mostly because he was too surprised to react quickly enough. He could do nothing but gape as the door slammed in his face.

A few seconds passed before he was knocking on the door again, this time much more frantically.

“Jeongin, come on,” he said. “Please, can we just talk? Please?”

“No,” Jeongin said, sounding like he was right on the other side of the door. His voice sounded so small. “I know what you’re going to say. You don’t need to say it.”

“No, you don’t know,” Hyunjin insisted. “Jeongin, I’m not mad. I don’t hate you or anything. I’m just…actually, I’m not even surprised. I’ve known for awhile.”

Jeongin didn’t respond, and Hyunjin sighed.

“Jeongin,” he started to say.

“Go away.” Jeongin’s voice lacked heat, but Hyunjin was still shocked to hear those words. “I don’t…I don’t want to see you again.”

Hyunjin didn’t think it was possible for something else to break inside of him, but he felt it. He felt something break completely, and he could only manage a weak, “What?” He hated the way his voice cracked from the emotion.

“Don’t make me say it again…”

“I just—why? What did I do? Will you please just _talk_ to me?”

Jeongin didn’t respond. Maybe he had finally walked away.

Hyunjin clenched his jaw and curled his hand into a fist. His impulses were spiking. He wasn’t going to leave so easily this time. No, he was _determined_ to see Jeongin and talk to him. He was going to stay here until Jeongin agreed to talk to him.

He didn’t really remember falling asleep. He didn’t even remember sitting down and leaning against the wall. All he remembered was being suddenly shaken awake by someone.

Hyunjin snapped awake. For a moment, he forgot where he was. He thought he was back at home, snuggled up under warm blankets with Baby curled up next to him. But then he saw Woojin crouched in front of him, his face full of sympathy and warmth, unlike the last few times Hyunjin had seen him.

Hyunjin opened his mouth to say something, but Woojin beat him to it.

“Come on,” Woojin said. Then he stood and unlocked the door…and kept it open. Hyunjin stared at it for a few seconds before jumping up and scrambling after him.

The apartment was…quaint. Somehow a bit smaller than Hyunjin’s. But it was cozy. Hyunjin immediately felt at ease here.

Woojin was in the kitchen, his back to Hyunjin. “I’m making tea,” he said over his shoulder. “I think you’ll need it.”

“Where’s Jeongin?” Hyunjin asked.

Woojin didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he turned around, the kettle in hand, and pointed at the kitchen table. “Sit.”

Hyunjin wanted to stand his ground and refuse to cooperate until he saw Jeongin, but something about Woojin made him think that staying on his good side was a better idea. So he shuffled over to the kitchen and obediently sat down.

Woojin stayed silent as he turned on the burner and put the kettle on. Then he moved towards the refrigerator and took his time taking out ingredients for dinner. Hyunjin’s stomach growled at the idea of food, since he hadn’t eaten lunch that day. He wrapped his arms around his torso, embarrassed, but Woojin didn’t seem to notice.

Finally, several minutes had gone by and Hyunjin couldn’t take it anymore.

“Where’s—” he started to say when Woojin held up a hand. Hyunjin cut himself off, but when Woojin didn’t say anything and continued preparing dinner, which just looked like a couple of hot dogs on a plate. Hyunjin frowned and tried to talk again.

“Are you—”

“No.” Woojin didn’t even look up.

“But—”

Woojin held up a hand again and turned to look at Hyunjin with an eyebrow raised. Hyunjin gave him the most confused and pleading expression he could manage, but Woojin just ignored him and put the plate of hot dogs in the microwave.

Hyunjin clenched his jaw, once again resisting the urge to scream.

Now Woojin was rifling through a little box full of tea packets, looking incredibly concentrated in his selection. He finally spoke, but it was about _tea_ of all things. “Would you like chai, black tea, or mint?”

“None of the above,” Hyunjin scoffed.

“Oh, I have orange, too.” Woojin held up the packet of orange tea and raised his eyebrows. “Orange is nice.”

“When can I talk to Jeongin?” Hyunjin asked.

Woojin sighed and put the packet back in the little box. “I suppose it’s a green tea kind of night.”

“Woojin,” Hyunjin said, annoyed.

“You know, this isn’t even stuff bought from the store. This comes from China and Britain. I don’t let just _anyone_ drink my teas. You should feel special.”

Hyunjin opened his mouth to reply, but the microwave beeped, and Woojin was back to focusing on making dinner, if heating up some hot dogs counted as “making dinner.” Hyunjin couldn’t help wrinkling his nose at the plate as Woojin set it down across from him.

“Stop making that face,” Woojin said. “These aren’t for you.”

Hyunjin arched an eyebrow at that, but then Woojin turned back to the stove to tend to the kettle as it started whistling.

“You’re just in time,” Woojin said.

Hyunjin opened his mouth to ask him what he meant, but then he realized that they weren’t alone anymore. He looked towards the doorway of the kitchen, where Jeongin stood. He was looking at Hyunjin, but when their eyes locked, Jeongin quickly looked away.

“Tea?” Woojin asked, already in the process of pouring three mugs.

“Chamomile?” Jeongin asked in a small voice.

Woojin smiled warmly at him before slipping a tea bag in one of the mugs and setting it down on the table by the plate of hot dogs. He set a mug in front of Hyunjin too, and said, “Since you wouldn’t tell me what you wanted, I chose for you. Try to figure it out. I’ll be in the living room.” Then he picked up his own mug and walked out of the kitchen.

Hyunjin blinked, suddenly all too aware of the fact that it was finally just him and Jeongin in the same room. Barely a few feet apart, too, as Jeongin sat down across from him. All the words Hyunjin had planned to say died in his mouth. He ended up just staring at Jeongin, who wouldn’t look at him as he ate his hot dogs. It was so quiet that Hyunjin could hear Woojin’s chair creaking in the living room as he shifted to get comfortable, as well as the pages of a book flicking. He needed to say something, anything.

He cleared his throat, making Jeongin pause from eating for a moment.

“Jeongin,” Hyunjin began. He half expected Jeongin to interrupt, but when Jeongin stayed silent, Hyunjin scrambled for the next words. Unfortunately, his brain and mouth decided to betray him, because what came out was, “Why are you eating hot dogs like that for dinner?”

Jeongin looked up at that. He looked so young and ridiculously _cute_ looking through his bangs with those huge eyes of his. “I like them,” he said shortly.

“Yeah, but why?” Hyunjin couldn’t help wrinkling his nose. “Don’t you want something else with them? Like…ketchup at least?”

“No,” Jeongin said. “You never gave me hot dogs with ketchup.”

Hyunjin frowned at that, only to remember a moment later. The first time he ever met Baby—met _Jeongin_. He had been a tiny, starving kit, begging for a hot dog when Hyunjin had been camping with his parents. And even when he accidentally brought Baby— _Jeongin_ —home, he gave him hot dogs until he figured out the best diet for foxes.

“I didn’t, did I,” Hyunjin said quietly. “I always gave them to you plain."

Jeongin nodded, back to avoiding Hyunjin’s gaze as he stared down at his plate.

“So,” Hyunjin said. He cleared his throat again, but this time Jeongin spoke.

“Why are you here?”

Hyunjin blinked. “Why else? To see you. To talk to you.”

“But why?” Jeongin didn’t look up at him. “There’s nothing to talk about.”

“Nothing to talk about?”

“You said you figured it out,” Jeongin said. “I know what you’re going to say. So, there’s nothing to talk about.”

“You don’t even want to know how I figured it out?” Hyunjin asked.

Jeongin shrugged. “You’re smart. I’m not surprised you put two-and-two together. Especially when I shifted right in front of you.”

“I figured it out a week ago,” Hyunjin said.

Jeongin paused at that, then looked up. “You…did?”

“Yes,” Hyunjin said. “I wanted to know where you snuck off to every morning. So I followed you here. At first I thought that you were Baby’s new owner, but you said that you weren’t allowed to have pets. And that’s when I started noticing the similarities. I even took pictures to compare the two of you.”

Jeongin just stared at him, his mouth hanging open, his eyes wide. God, he looked so cute in that moment. And so much like Baby. Hyunjin honestly had no idea how he didn’t figure this out the moment he met Jeongin. He had even thought Jeongin looked familiar, didn’t he?

“But…” Jeongin blinked a few times. “But if you figured it out…why did you still let me visit at night? Why did you still come to the bookstore to talk to me? Why weren’t you disgusted? You _should_ be disgusted. You should hate me.”

“Why would I think any of that?” Hyunjin couldn’t help it and reached out. He put his hand over Jeongin’s, making Jeongin’s eyes go impossibly wider. “Even when you accidentally tore open my hand and ran way, I could never hate you.”

“But I’m—” Jeongin swallowed, his eyes already brimming with tears. “I’m a—I’m some _freak_ , some creep that lied to you and—”

“You are not a freak,” Hyunjin said, almost forcefully. “You are not a freak, Jeongin. If anything, you’re…amazing. Incredible. You can shift forms? That’s amazing! I don’t know anyone else who can do that! That makes you special.”

Jeongin shook his head. “You don’t even know what I am.”

“Well, tell me, then. How are you able to shift?”

“I’m…I’m not…I’m not from here.” Jeongin started to pull his hand away, but Hyunjin held onto it to stop him. “I’m from…from…”

“It’s okay,” Hyunjin whispered when Jeongin seemed to have too much difficulty getting out the words.

Jeongin finally just pointed upwards, his shoulders hunching like he was preparing for Hyunjin to shout at him or something.

Hyunjin looked at his finger, then looked up. “From the sky?” He gasped suddenly, his eyes widening. “Are you an alien? That would be so cool!”

“No, no, I’m not an alien,” Jeongin said.

“An angel, then.” Hyunjin smiled.

Jeongin blushed at that but said, “They call me Vulpecula.”

“Vulpecula,” Hyunjin repeated. “Like…the constellation?”

Jeongin nodded.

“You’re…you’re a constellation?”

Jeongin winced but nodded again.

“The little fox,” Hyunjin murmured. He studied Jeongin for a few moments before a smile made its way onto his face. “That makes sense.”

“You’re just saying that,” Jeongin said. “You don’t believe me at all. You’re just hiding your disgust to make me feel better.”

“Jeongin,” Hyunjin said. “Hey, Jeongin. Look at me. Please?”

Jeongin slowly raised his eyes to Hyunjin’s.

Hyunjin smiled at him. “Do I look like I’m secretly disgusted with you?”

“No…” Jeongin admitted quietly.

“That’s because I’m not,” Hyunjin said. “It makes _sense_. You’re the little fox in the sky, so you became a little fox down here. And then you became a little, foxy human.” He couldn’t help grinning. “Maybe I shouldn’t use ‘foxy’ to describe you as a human. _Fox-like._ Not foxy in _that_ way. You’re more cute than foxy.”

Jeongin just blinked at him, the blush starting to creep up onto his face again.

“Were you always able to shift into a human?” Hyunjin asked.

Jeongin shook his head. “No. When I met you, I actually was fine with just staying as a fox forever. As long as I was with you. But the longer I stayed as a fox, the harder it was to resist these…tendencies. That’s why I started acting out. I couldn’t stop them.”

Hyunjin stayed silent, hoping he would continue.

Fortunately, Jeongin did. He took a deep breath and said, “I didn’t want to leave. But then I hurt you and I…I was so afraid and guilty and I knew you would hate me if I stayed so…I left. I ran away to Woojin. He taught me how to shift and gave me a place to stay.”

“Why Woojin?”

“He’s like me.”

“Oh, really?” Hyunjin raised his eyebrows. “Which constellation is he?”

“Ursa Major.” Jeongin’s voice was so small.

Hyunjin smiled. “He does seem like a bear, doesn’t he? He’s cuddly but looks like he can rip your face off in seconds.”

Jeongin snorted at that.

“I can hear you,” Woojin said from the living room.

Hyunjin grinned at Jeongin, who grinned back. At the same time, Jeongin squeezed Hyunjin’s hand. Hyunjin’s heart shouldn’t have fluttered so easily at that, but it did.

“But that was months ago,” Hyunjin said to Jeongin. “If you knew how to shift back and forth, why did you wait so long to come back?”

“I thought you hated me,” Jeongin said. “But then I saw you in the bookstore and it all…it all came rushing back. I missed you so much that I had to see you again.”

“I missed you too,” Hyunjin whispered. “Things have been so hard lately, Jeongin. I can’t lose you too.”

“Like Chan?” Jeongin asked.

Hyunjin jerked his hand back before he even realized he was doing. Jeongin’s eyes went wide, like he hadn’t meant to say that.

“That’s not—that’s not what I meant to say,” Jeongin said.

“It’s fine,” Hyunjin said quietly, but now he was the one staring down at the table and avoiding Jeongin’s gaze. He cleared his throat. “But you’re right. I can’t lose you like I lost Chan. You mean a lot to me.”

“As…as a friend?” Jeongin asked in a small, hesitant voice.

Hyunjin looked up and frowned. “Yeah. In what other way would it be?”

Jeongin’s face flashed with something like surprise and pain, and Hyunjin’s heart immediately squeezed.

“Oh,” Hyunjin said. “You—”

“It’s nothing.” Jeongin looked away. He dropped both of his hands into his lap. “You’re right. We’re friends. You’re—you wouldn’t think of someone who used to be your pet fox in _that_ way, would you? That would just be…weird. Disgusting. No one does that.” He shook his head.

“Jeongin,” Hyunjin started to say.

“As long as we’re together, it doesn’t matter,” Jeongin said. “Being friends is just fine.” He smiled, but it looked forced.

Hyunjin didn’t know what to say. Sure, he thought Jeongin was cute, but that was in like a cute, younger brother sort of way. And obviously he always thought Baby was cute. “Is…is that what you want?”

“Yeah.” Jeongin’s smile faltered for a second, then it was back in full-force. He nodded. “Yeah. Friends.”

“Okay.” Hyunjin smiled back. “Friends.”

And that was that.

*

Jeongin stood at the front door, his hand still on the smooth wood, long after Hyunjin had left. He stood there for so long that Woojin looked up from his book in the living room.

“Jeongin?” Woojin said.

Jeongin jumped and turned to look at him, his eyes wide like he had just snapped out of a trance. “Yeah?”

Woojin’s expression was concerned. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” Jeongin asked, forcing a shaky smile.

Woojin just looked at him, and Jeongin couldn’t hold back any more. He broke down for what felt like the millionth time in a few days. Woojin set his book aside and held open his arms. Jeongin didn’t waste a single moment going over to him and collapsing into his arms. Somehow he managed to curl up in the chair with him. It wasn’t exactly comfortable, but Woojin didn’t complain at all as he held Jeongin and rubbed his back.

“Shh, it’s okay,” Woojin murmured.

“It hurts,” Jeongin said in between sobs. “It—it hurts so much—”

“I know, I know.” Woojin rested his head against Jeongin’s. “I know, Jeongin.”

They stayed like that for a long, long time.

**Author's Note:**

> Apologies ahead of time for that ending but at the same time…I’m not that sorry haha :) 
> 
> But I finally got my shit together and outlined the next few parts! I finally know what I’m doing! Somewhat! :D Anyways, the plan so far is for there to be five parts total. They might vary in length too.


End file.
